P1 Closure
by miss37
Summary: Mac takes a day off to spend with Christine and it is his anniversary with his late wife. Will he ever have closure about Claire? Will he ever get that call or visit? He and Christine decide to get married that week and then Mac and his team get into a bizarre case about a serial killer who targets women from a certain gym. Can they find him so that Mac can get to his wedding?
1. Chapter 1

He stood in the cemetery like he did every year on this day with two red roses in his hand…but this time he was not alone. Mac Taylor stood at the monument to his late wife, Claire, and his soon to be new wife, Christine, was there with him. He wiped a tear off his face. Christine hugged his arm and leaned on his shoulder. "If I had just gotten something," he said. "Anything."

Christine did not know what to say. She watched him put the two red roses in the vase atop the monument. It was Mac and Claire's anniversary. He always came to the cemetery on this day and brought two red roses. He had always given her two red roses on their anniversary because it was just the two of them…and he had always thought it would be that way. Mac frowned as he looked at the monument again. Why could he not get that knock on his door or that phone call that they had found something that was part of Claire? Those towers had smoldered for a long time and the heat had melted everything that was in there. He could remember the smell but he had always tried to keep some hope that they would find something.

They turned to leave the cemetery. "Are you okay?" Christine asked.

Mac nodded. "This day is just always hard for me," he said.

"I can understand why it is."

Mac looked at her. "Do you really understand?" he asked.

"Yes I do. Do you think I'm jealous?

"Well, that was a problem in the past but I'm glad that we're together. I guess those other relationships were not meant to be but ours is."

Christine looked at him. "I know it was," she said. "You're the most gentle and kind man I have ever met and I can't imagine spending my life with anyone else that I have ever met."

Mac kissed her hand. "Me neither. You understand me and accept me the way I am."

"I wouldn't want you any other way."

They walked out to Mac's Avalanche and got in. "To lunch?" Mac asked.

"To lunch," Christine replied.

Mac cranked up and they headed for their favorite lunch spot. "Why don't we go somewhere this afternoon and just have some fun?" Mac asked.

Christine looked at him a little surprised. He did not usually want to get an inch from the office. "Like where?" she asked.

Mac thought a moment. "I tell you what, why don't we take the whole weekend and go up in the mountains and fish?" he asked.

Christine stared at him a moment. "Fish?" she asked.

"Yeah, fish. It's relaxing and quiet and we could have a lot of time together."

Christine smiled. "Are you saying that you want to have some time alone with me?" she asked.

Mac looked at her. "Yes," he said. "It seems to me that the only way to do that is to take you away somewhere."

"That sounds wonderful. I would love to go."

"Great. I'm going to take the weekend off and…" Mac looked at her. "Can you get the weekend off?"

"Yes. I think I can."

"Good. We'll have a great time. Let's leave Friday and we can spend Saturday and Sunday there."

"And come back on Monday?"

"Probably Sunday evening."

"Fine. I will be ready."

"Are you the outdoors type?"

Christine considered that. "I don't know but I can handle anything you throw at me…even worms."

Mac smiled his mischievous smile. "You want me to throw a worm at you?" he asked.

"You better not dare or I will throw you in the lake."

"How do you know it's a lake?"

"Well, it must be some sort of body of water. And where will we be staying?"

"In a cabin."

"Does it have running water? A toilet?"

Mac laughed. "You'll just have to wait and see."

"You better not take me to some cabin on the edge of a mountain that looked like it is about to fall off into a deep valley."

"I promise it's not."

"Good." Christine watched Mac a moment. "Where are we going on our honeymoon?"

Mac smiled and looked at her. "That's a surprise."

"Mac, come on and tell me."

"I will tell you this, it's not Las Vegas."

"Can't you give me a hint?"

Mac pretended to consider that. "No," he said and smiled.

"Oh you. After this weekend, we might not need a honeymoon."

"Why?"

"It might be so wonderful that nothing can top it."

"You might be right."

They arrived at the restaurant and went inside. Of course, it was a little crowded but they soon had a table. Mac looked at the menu and thought about what he wanted to eat. "I want some fries today," he said. "I don't think I can stand another salad."

"I can definitely stand something besides a salad myself," Christine replied.

Mac leaned on the table. "I hate to tell you but I have a weakness for hotdogs."

"Well, we all have our weaknesses. Why do you think I became a chef?"

"I don't know. Why did you?"

"Because I love food and love to fix it."

"I guess that's a good reason."

"Why did you become a cop?"

Mac considered that. "Because I like serving the people and because I don't want criminals running loose in this city."

"I guess that's a good reason."

Mac smiled. "Are you teasing me?"

"Oh, I would never do that."

Mac shook his head. "What did I ever do without you?"

"I think you were bored to death."

Mac laughed at that. "I might have been," he said. "What did you do without me?"

"I was bored to death too, and now, I'm in love."

"That's a good place to be. I have a lot less stress now."

"Me too."

Mac ordered himself a hotdog with kraut on it and he would have to put the condiments on it when it arrived and he ordered a big order of fries. Christine did not care much for hotdogs so she ordered a turkey sandwich with fries. "It's a beautiful day out there," Christine said.

"Yes," Mac agreed. "So, what do you want to do after this?"

"Why don't we go and walk along the beach?"

"That could be fun. Are you going to wear a bikini?"

Christine smiled. "Are you?"

"Absolutely not. I'll wear shorts and a tank top."

"Me too."

Their meals soon arrived. "I think this is the longest that we have ever gotten to be together," Christine said.

"I took the day off," Mac replied. "I wanted a day with you and this was the only way to get it."

"And now you're going to take the weekend too? They might think you're getting lazy."

Mac smiled. "Well, maybe I am," he said. He popped a fry into his mouth. "I'm tired of working all the time."

"All work and no play…"

"Yeah, I know, I'm a dull boy."

Christine's smiled faded. "You're not dull to me," she said. "I love you just the way you are."

Mac looked at her. "So, you don't think I should 'loosen up' or 'get out more'?"

"I don't care anything about being loose. People get into trouble being too loose. I prefer a more quiet evening and just being at home after a long day at work, but I like vacations too."

"I have not been one to take vacations much. I felt that I had an obligation to my job." Mac frowned. "Sometimes I think I put that obligation over what was best."

"Mac, as much as you loved Claire, there's no way she couldn't have known it."

"I hope you're right."

"If she felt anything like I do, she did."

"I just wish I…if there was just something."

Christine could not imagine what it would be like to lose someone and never have any part of them to bury. She had definitely never experienced that. She had lost her brother in the line of duty and Mac had been his partner at the time. It had been a hard time for both of them but Mac was married then and they had lost contact after that. She had not heard from him in years although she had seen his picture in the paper. But when she saw his profile on the social network, she had to send him a friend request just to see what would happen. She had waited a few days before he actually approved it, but she had been anxious those days too. Then they had coffee together and she had thought that might be all it would amount to but then he had called her. Wow, she had not expected that. It had made her feel like a young girl again with a crush on a boy and when they kissed, she had thought she would pass out. She supposed her family could stop worrying about her being alone now because she would never be alone again. She looked at Mac who was eating his hotdog and had a little mustard on his chin. She had to smile. He was not so hard that he could not have fun.

Mac looked at her, maybe sensing that she was looking at him. He noticed her smile. "What?" he asked.

Christine got a napkin and wiped his chin. "You had a little mustard there," she said.

"Oh. Thanks."

"I was just thinking about how lucky I am."

"I think I'm the one who's lucky because I'm lucky that you didn't give up on me."

"I have to admit, there was a time…but I'm glad I didn't."

"I was just not used to letting someone know everything about me anymore. I like it though." Mac smiled. "I like having someone to share everything with and I'm looking forward to being married and sharing 'everything'."

"I can't imagine what that's like but I'm looking forward to it too."

"It's not like anything you've ever done but it is very comforting and makes you happy."

"I am sure of that."

They finished eating and then Mac took Christine to her apartment so she could change and he went to his own apartment to change. He went in and changed into a red tank top and shorts and then headed back to Christine's apartment to pick her up. She was waiting for him when he arrived. She was wearing a blue tank top and light blue jean shorts. "So, do you like it?" she asked.

"Absolutely," Mac replied.

"You don't look so bad yourself."

"Sun and sand here we come."

Mac pulled out and headed toward Long Island where they would spend some time on the beach. "I even brought a picnic basket," Christine said. "We might get hungry."

Mac laughed. "After what we just ate? Are you trying to fatten me up? You know men gain weight after they get married."

"I'll watch out for you. You just enjoy and don't worry about it."

"And I'll watch your behind, right?"

"I didn't say that."

Mac laughed and just then, his phone rang. He looked at Christine and then got his phone off his side. "Taylor," he answered, sounding all business again.

"Mac, I know this is your day off, but can you come in for just a little while?" Jo asked.

"Why?" Mac asked.

"I need your approval on something."

Mac sighed. "Okay," he said. "But don't expect me to be dressed like I normally am."

"I don't care how you're dressed."

"I'll be there soon."

Mac ended the call and looked at Christine. "Don't tell me our day is over," Christine said.

"No," Mac said. "I have to go in and just approve something and then we will go on with our plans."

Christine smiled. "You're going like that?" she asked.

"I sure am, and I don't care what anyone thinks. I'm on vacation."

"I want to go in with you."

"You'll enjoy that, won't you?"

"OH yes. Wouldn't miss it."

"It might not be so entertaining as you think."

"I think it will."

Mac had to wonder what everyone would think of seeing him in shorts and a tank top with sandals, but they might as well not think that he only lived in that office. He hardly ever wore a suit when he was not there. If they saw him when he was off, they might never see him in a suit but they would definitely see him dressed differently today…


	2. Chapter 2

Mac and Christine arrived at the office and went up to the lab. Mac cleared his throat as he left the elevator, hoping that no one would make such a big deal about how he was dressed. He walked around to the lab and just as they were walking by the door, Danny Messer came out and almost ran into him. "Whoa!" Danny said. "Mac! Is that a new look?"

"This is my day off," Mac said. "We were going to the beach and then Jo called and asked me to come down here."

"She must be in her office."

"Thanks."

Mac and Christine went on around to Jo Danville's office. She was sitting at her cluttered desk. "Jo, I'm here," Mac said as he walked up to the door.

"Mac…" Jo stared at Mac a moment. She had never seen him dressed like that. "Uhm, I need you to approve this order for the new DNA machines," she said.

Mac looked at the paper order form. "It's about time they got this underway," he said. He read the order form.

"So where are you two going?" Jo asked.

"To the beach," Christine replied. "It's such a beautiful day."

Mac frowned as he remembered Claire saying something like that the day she died. _It's such a beautiful day out there, we should play hooky. _Those words always echoed in his mind. He knew if he had gone along with her, she might be alive today. He wished he could stop thinking about that but he had found it impossible. That day was tattooed on his mind so vividly that it seemed like yesterday. He had thought over it so many times after she died. He had wanted to remember everything about it because she was gone and he wanted to remember her. He had been afraid for a long time that he would forget the sound of her voice but as time passed he realized that he would not. He could hear her laugh when something happened that reminded him of her and he knew she would have laughed. He could hardly believe it was still like that even after all these years.

"Mac!" Christine was saying.

Mac looked at her and realized he had been just staring at the paper and not really comprehending what he was reading. "What?" he asked.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes. Why?"

Jo folded her arms. She thought he was acting strange too but she did not know that today was a difficult day for him. He had never said much to her about Claire. "Are you done with that?" she asked.

"Uhm…" Mac signed the order. "Yes. I'm done." He gave the papers back to Jo. He looked at them. "What?"

"Let's go," Christine said. "That beach is just waiting for us."

"Right."

Mac and Christine headed for the elevator. "Have fun," Jo said. She watched them. She knew Mac had been thinking about something and he looked troubled but he had Christine to confide in now. He certainly did not have to tell her anything.

Mac and Christine got into the elevator. "Mac, what were you thinking about?" Christine asked.

Mac frowned and looked down at the floor. "Nothing," he said.

"You can tell me."

"I'm sorry. This day is just hard for me."

Christine hugged his arm. "You don't have to hide anything from me," she said.

Mac swallowed hard. He could not erase his memories and he had truly loved Claire. There was no one else in the world that he ever wanted…until now. He felt conflicted at times, wondering how someone could love someone else after they loved a person as much as he had loved Claire. He had realized that he could not love the same things about Christine as he loved about Claire because she was not the same person. He had to love her for who she was, and not compare her to Claire.

The elevator doors opened and they went out to the Avalanche. Christine watched Mac a moment as he drove. "Are you going to tell me?" she asked. "I want to know what bothers you."

Mac frowned. "You can't understand," he said. "You've never been married and you don't know what I'm talking about."

"Maybe not, but I know you and I also love you and I want to know what bothers you, what makes you sad, what makes you happy, what makes you cry, what makes you feel excited. I want to know all those things and I have a right to know."

Mac looked at her a moment. She was right. She 'did' have a right to know. If she was going to marry him and spend her life with him, she had a right to know all those things. "Something you said," he said. "When you said 'it's such a beautiful day out there'. I've just been thinking about Claire today and when you said that…"

Christine stroked his hair. "It is a beautiful day."

"That day was a beautiful day too…I remember. Claire was on the…" Mac sighed. "The last time I saw her, the bus was pulling away to take her to work. I didn't get there in time…the towers collapsed. When you said that, I remembered her saying that morning that it was such a beautiful day we ought to play hooky and go to the beach…if I had…"

Christine's mouth dropped open as she heard that. "Mac Taylor, you could not have known what would happen," she said.

"I know that. I've told myself that. The therapist told me that. Do you know how long I was in therapy before I could even go back to work, before I could even…"

"It was not your fault. There is no possible way it could have been your fault."

"I've always put my job before everything. I never spent enough time with Claire." Mac looked at Christine. "I promise, I will not be that way with you."

"Mac, don't feel this way."

"I can't help it. I don't want to put my job before you…and I've already been doing that. I've not taken days off to be with you and today, I went to the office when I'm supposed to be spending it with you."

"We were only there a few minutes."

"But I should have told her that it would have to wait until tomorrow."

"That is nonsense. You stop talking like this right now. I don't want you to change and not care about your job. Your job is important to this city."

"What about what's important to you? What about after we're married? Am I going to be able to be there with you and be able to make love before the phone rings? Have to rush through it?"

Christine was not sure what to say. "I don't know, Mac, but whatever comes, we will face it together. Isn't that what you said marriage is about?"

"It's just this day. It always does this to me. I'm sorry if I am ruining your day."

"You know better than that. You are not ruining my day."

They arrived at the beach and got out. Mac looked out across the water. He could not help but remember how Claire loved the ocean. That was why he let those tickets go in the ocean. "Are you coming?" Christine asked as she held her hand out to Mac.

Mac looked at her and then smiled. "Yeah." He took her hand and they went down to the beach.

Christine flashed Mac a smile and then ran. Mac went after her. He could not remember the last time he ran down the beach at a pace of chase unless he was chasing some criminal. He suddenly felt happy and Christine was laughing which made him feel even happier. He watched her blond hair flying behind her and finally she fell and rolled over out of his way as she was shaking with laughter. Mac stopped and dropped on the beach beside her. Christine threw her arms around his neck and gave him a big kiss. Mac lay down on his back. "Wow, you were trying to make me work off that hotdog, weren't you?" he asked. "Or were you punishing me for going to the office?"

"Oh, you needed to work off that hotdog," Christine said as she leaned over Mac. "Such beautiful eyes."

Mac bit his bottom lip. "I'm sure the rest of me looks old, right?" he asked.

"Well, I wouldn't know about 'all' the rest of you, but you don't look old to me."

"Are you getting dirty with me?"

"Mac Taylor, I'm beginning to think you have a low self-esteem."

"Well, I can see in the mirror that I don't look as young as I used to."

"Nobody does," Christine said. "And it doesn't matter. I love you anyway."

"Are you going to love me when all my hair is gray?"

"Of course. Are you going to love me when mine is?"

"Absolutely. Why don't we just grow old together?"

"That would suit me just fine." Christine lay down beside Mac and propped her head and hands on his chest. "So, are we going to grow old in New York?"

"For a while, probably, unless you have something else in mind."

"I don't right now. Maybe we can open a restaurant somewhere and just live in a smaller city."

"We could."

"How much longer are you going to chase criminals around?" Christine asked.

"Oh I don't know. I thought I would retire after a few more years while I still can."

"Then we can run away together?"

"I would love to." Mac kissed her. "Why don't we get up and walk on this beach some more? I have to go back to work tomorrow, you know."

"Me too." Christine stood up. "I guess we can see the beach at a slower pace this time."

"That would be good."

They began walking hand in hand and talking as they walked. Mac was looking around as he had a habit of doing when he was around a lot of people. He noticed a guy walking down the beach with a bag hanging around him and he noticed the guy bend over behind a woman and then he walked on. Mac watched and the man stopped behind the next woman as well. "Mac, are you listening to me?" Christine asked.

Mac looked at her. "I think I see a pick pocket," he said.

"A pick pocket?"

"Yeah, look at that guy with the bag."

Christine watched and saw what Mac was seeing. They looked at each other. "What are you going to do?" she asked.

"Stop him," Mac replied.

"Mac."

Mac began to walk toward the guy who was stealing wallets and whatever else he was stealing. Mac was sure that was what he was doing. Before he could get to the guy, the man looked up and saw Mac coming that way and could not help but notice that intense stare. He knew Mac was a cop without seeing a badge or anything. He turned and started running and Mac went after him. "Stop! Police!" Mac yelled. "Stop!"

The guy did anything but stop. He ran down the beach to a dune which led up to the parking area. Mac was trying to catch up with him. "Stop!" he yelled. "Police!"

Just then, a beach patrolman came up on his four wheeler. He stopped and jumped off as the criminal ran by. He grabbed the man and threw him to the ground and then Mac got there and helped him. "He was stealing from people down there on the beach," Mac said. "I saw him."

"We've been after this guy for a long time," the patrolman said. "Thanks."

"You're welcome. I'm Detective Taylor. Glad to help."

Mac turned and went back down to the beach. Christine met him beside the water. "Well, did you get him?" she asked.

"I helped get him," Mac replied. "He's in custody now."

"Great."

Mac and Christine spent a few hours on the beach and then went home to get ready for their evening together. Mac stood in front of the mirror fixing his tie. They were going to the opera tonight and he wanted to look nice. He was sure Christine would be beautiful. He looked in the mirror. He thought he looked much older than her but he supposed if she loved him, she must know that he was older than her and did not care about that.

After the opera, Mac walked Christine to her door. "I had such a wonderful time," she said as she pulled him toward her holding his lapels. They shared a long kiss. "Why don't you come in a while?"

Mac smiled. "I have to get up early," he said.

"Are you making excuses?"

"Maybe." Mac jumped back as Christine playfully aimed at his shoulder with a punch. "You!"

"Hey, now, don't get violent."

Christine grabbed his hand and pulled him into the apartment. She pushed him against the door as it closed. "Now, I want some more of those kisses," she said.

Mac smiled and kissed her as he pulled her closer to him. "How was that?" he asked.

"You're getting right on up there to a ten," Christine said.

"That wasn't a ten yet?"

"It was definitely a nine."

"Oh. I'll see if I can do better."

They kissed again and lingered this time. "Oh, I think that was more than a ten," Christine said.

Mac smiled. "You're definitely more than a ten."

"Can't you stay a while?"

"If I go in yawning in the morning with a big smile on my face, everybody is going to know why."

"Do I bring a smile to your face?"

"Absolutely. I guess I've smiled more since I met you than I have in eleven years."

Christine stroked his hair and face. "You bring a smile to my face too," she said.

Mac stared into her eyes. "Do you want a big wedding?" he asked.

"What?"

"Do you want a big wedding?"

"Well, it is my first wedding. I think I would like to wear a pretty dress and have my family there and…why?"

"How soon can you have all that done?"

"I can have it done by Friday if you want."

"Let's get married Friday and spend our honeymoon at the cabin this weekend."

Christine stared at him a moment and then smiled. "I would love to," she said.


	3. Chapter 3

The next morning, Mac woke up when his alarm came on. He rolled over on his back and looked at the ceiling. It was Tuesday morning. He sat up as he remembered what he told Christine the night before. They were going to get married Friday. He wondered if she could get everything ready by then. That was only four days away! He sat up on the side of the bed and rubbed his face. He looked in the nightstand beside his bed and pulled out the ring box that held their wedding bands. He opened it and looked at them. He remembered when he had taken off his first wedding band. It had been the hardest thing he had ever done. He had felt horrible the whole evening and then had put it back on when he got home. He had felt like it was his last tie to Claire. He still had that wedding band but he would not wear it again. He put the box back into the drawer and went into the bathroom. He hoped he would be busy at the office today so he would not have to think too much about that, but what would the others think when they found out…well, it did not matter what they thought. He might not do things like most people but he did it his own way.

When Mac was dressed, he went into the kitchen. Since he started dating Christine…or since he had met Jo, he had been lectured several times about skipping meals. He looked in the refrigerator and took out two eggs and some ham. He liked ham and eggs for breakfast so that was what he usually ate now and drank some coffee. He put the ham into the skillet and then went over to his coffee maker which only made one cup at a time. He put the coffee and water into it and got that started and then went back to the ham which was starting to fry. Christine had showed him better ways to cook things and he was glad. He used to just go out to eat all the time and did not bother to try and make much on his own, but he thought he enjoyed making more things at home now that he knew more what he was doing.

Mac finished making his breakfast and went into the living room to watch a little TV while he ate. He had never took time to do anything like this before but it was not time for him to be in the lab yet and he did not have to be in a hurry. He had finally started making a schedule for everyone so that the work was rather balanced until something happened in the middle of the night which would make everyone have to get out of bed. He did not get any calls last night. He had sat on the sofa with Christine for a while…he smiled thinking of that. She had been a little frisky, but he liked that, of course. He could not wait to see how frisky she would be on the honeymoon.

Mac almost laughed at himself with that thought. He wondered what she thought about him. Sometimes he lay in bed and wondered what it would be like to…He shook his head. He did not need to be thinking about that this morning. He would already be smiling this morning because he had enjoyed his time with Christine last night. He looked at his watch as he turned the TV to the news. He frowned as he saw the news about the wildfires out West and floods down South. He wished some of that water could go out there and put out those fires.

If he timed himself right, he might be able to stop by Christine's restaurant this morning before he went to the office. He finished his breakfast and then headed out. He went down to the Avalanche and headed to the restaurant. He knew Christine was already there when he arrived but the restaurant was not open yet. He knocked on the door and looked in to see if she came from the back. Finally, he saw her coming to the door. She smiled as she opened the door. "What are you doing here?" she asked. "Are you here for breakfast?"

"No," Mac said. "I already ate. I learned from the best."

"Oh, that's a good line."

"I just wanted to come by and see you this morning before I went to work." Mac put his arms around her and kissed her. "I can't wait to do that every morning."

"It won't be long, my love. I'm going to make the food myself and have my family help and I already have my dress."

"Oh really? When did you get it?"

"It was my mother's."

Mac smiled. "That's nice. I guess I will have to rent a tux…or I could wear the one I have."

"You can wear the one you have." Christine moved up to his ear. "You won't be wearing it long," she whispered.

Mac looked at her a moment just a little speechless and he thought his face must be a little red now. "I hope that wedding dress has a zipper," he said.

Christine laughed. She threw her arms around his neck and just savored the feeling of his arms around her. "I love you so much, Mac," she said.

Mac held her tight. "I love you too, Christine." He looked at her. "I have to get to the office. I will see you this evening if I can. I'll drive you home."

"Okay." Christine kissed him again. "Have a good day."

"I will."

Mac turned and left. Christine made sure the door was locked. She stood at the door and watched Mac leave. She did not want him to know how nervous she was at the restaurant alone sometimes. Since that ordeal she had been through, she found it hard to come there alone but she was trying to overcome that because it was her job and she had to do it. She did not want Mac to feel that he had to rush over and bring her to work every morning. After they were married, she would tell him because he would be there with her anyway and then he could bring her to work. She loved the thought of that. She smiled as she went back to the kitchen. The others would be in soon and she would feel better then.

Mac went to the office and went up to the lab. He was whistling as he was walking to his office. He noticed everyone looking at him and he realized he was whistling. He did not care, he felt happy this morning. He went on into his office and hung up his suit jacket and sat down at his desk. He had a lot of paper work to do so he thought he might as well get on it. He was sometimes amazed at how much paperwork went through this lab.

Jo came down the hall to Mac's office. "Good morning," she said as she stopped at his door. "How are you this morning after your day off?"

"I'm doing fine," Mac said. "And how did things go around here without me?"

"Well, this might surprise you but no one burned this lab down and nothing fell apart."

Mac shook his head. "I guess I deserve that," he said.

"I'm just glad you took a day off to spend with that woman who brought such a beautiful smile to your face."

Mac smiled. "Thanks, Jo."

"You're welcome."

Jo walked away heading to the lab. Mac looked at the picture of Christine sitting on his desk. He thought she was beautiful and she made his heart do things it had not done in years. He thought about the fact that they were going to get married Friday. He looked toward the lab. That meant he would have to tell everyone here. He thought of how he would want to say that. He would have to tell them or they would be terribly hurt. He got up and walked to the laboratory to see if everyone was in there.

Just as Mac was about to walk into the lab, his phone rang with a text from Christine. He took the phone off his side and looked at the message: _I want to send invitations to all your friends at the lab. Should I send them to them or will you just deliver them personally? _

Mac considered that. He supposed he could deliver them but he would have to tell them before that. He texted back to Christine and told her as much. Then he looked into the lab again. No one was working on a case right now except finishing up some last minute work for cases which were being processed. Mac walked on into the lab where Danny and Lindsay were working. "Morning, Mac," Danny said.

"Morning," Mac replied. He cleared his throat. "Uhm, I have something I need to tell everyone."

Mac's phone rang again. He took it off his side. It was another text. _Okay, I will have the invitations ready tonight. _

Mac put his phone away and looked at Danny and Lindsay. "You wanted to tell us something?" Lindsay asked.

"Yeah," Mac said. "I want to tell everyone."

"I'll get everyone."

Mac waited and soon, Sheldon, Adam and Jo came into the lab. He wished Don and Sid were there too but he was sure they would know soon enough. "I wanted to tell all of you that…" Mac looked at them wondering what they would say. "Christine and I decided to get married this Friday and all of you are invited."

Everyone just stood there and stared at him a moment but then they were happy for him and congratulated him. "What time is the wedding?" Jo asked.

Mac thought a moment. They had not even discussed that yet. "Christine is going to send all of you an invitation with all the details on it," he said.

"So you're not helping, you're just going to show up?"

Mac shrugged. "I guess."

"Men always get the easy way out."

"Out? I don't think I'm getting out."

"Hey, he got you with that one," Danny said.

"Well, I hope we don't get into a difficult case before then," Mac said.

"Even if we do, you can go ahead and send us all a picture."

"I promise I will."

Mac went back to his office. He was glad that was over. He had to tell Don Flack next. He would tell him when he saw him. He was sure he would see him some time today.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hope you all enjoy this chapter and hope you will send reviews. :) thanks for reading. miss37**

Mac sat at his desk doing paperwork until around 10am and then his phone chimed with a text message, but this time it was not from Christine, it was a summons to a crime scene. He finished signing the paper he was signing and then put the papers into a folder. As he was standing up, Jo came down the hall. "Did you get the text?" she asked.

"Yes, I did," Mac replied.

Mac left his office and he and Jo headed for the elevator. "I wonder what this one is about," Jo said.

"I hope it's not something that will take a whole month to solve."

"Don't worry. You are excused if this case goes beyond Friday."

Mac smiled. "Thanks."

They went down to the crime scene which was in an apartment building. Don Flack met them in the hallway outside Apartment 5C. "Morning," Don said.

"What have we got in there, Don?" Mac asked.

"A thirty-five year old female, shot in the chest. Her name is Alissa Newton. Her license is a New York license, no criminal record. She worked in a Bridal Shop called 'Alissa's Creations'."

"Now who would want to kill someone like that?" Jo asked.

Mac and Jo squatted beside the body and began their examination. Mac looked at the victim's hands and stared at the fingernails. "Something on her nails here," he said.

Jo looked at the nails. "Nail glue?" she asked and looked at Mac. "Maybe she fought and her nails came off."

Mac scowled. "ALL of them? I've seen people lose one or two but all?"

They looked around the floor but did not find any artificial nails. Jo looked in the bathroom and found that the woman's makeup kit had been rummaged through. She thought that was odd. She took pictures of the mess and then collected more evidence.

Mac was still examining the body. "Looks like just one gunshot wound to the chest," he said. "No other wounds on the body." He looked around the body. "Doesn't look like there was even a struggle. Maybe she knew the person who attacked her."

"Or she didn't think they were a threat," Don suggested. He picked up a thick book from the table beside the sofa. "Maybe she was showing them wedding dresses."

"Well, surely no one would kill her over a wedding dress."

"I don't know, Mac. Some of these brides are pretty riled up."

Mac looked at Don. "Speaking of brides…Christine and I are getting married Friday," he said.

"Friday?" Don smiled. "Hey, congratulations."

"I'll bring you an invitation tomorrow."

"Great. When did you decide this?"

"Yesterday."

"That must have been some date."

Mac shook his head. "Get your mind on this crime scene," he said.

When they were done with the crime scene, they went back to the lab and turned in their evidence. Mac went to his office to start his report about everything that had happened so far. He was glad he could write reports again. He had gotten a lot better since Christine knew about his problem and she had been helping him. He still forgot something once in a while but it was not like it had been at the beginning. He always wondered what would happen when he got old. Would he develop Alzheimer's and forget everything? He shook his head. He had to stop fretting over things like that but he had to admit that it crossed his mind.

Mac wrote down everything that had happened so far and then he went down to the morgue to see what Sid had found out. "Hello, Sid," Mac said as he walked in.

"Mac, congratulations," Sid said. "I heard that you are getting married Friday."

"I was going to tell you when I got here. I hope you will be there."

"I wouldn't miss it."

Mac looked at the victim. "So, what do you know about this woman?" he asked.

"Well, she was killed by a gunshot to the heart," Sid said. "There was nothing else on the body, except for a substance on her fingernails. I got a sample of it." He gave Mac a dish with the bullet in it and one with the sample of glue in it. "Personally, I think it looks like nail glue. I know because my daughter used to love artificial nails and she couldn't get her own to grow so she would put those nails on and she glued them on and when she took them off, there was always a little glue left that she had to take off with a cotton ball or something, but anyway, it looks like her nails were removed."

Mac looked at the victim's hands. "That's what Jo thought," he said. "She said the victim's makeup had been rummaged through." He looked at Sid with a puzzled look. "Why would someone kill her and steal her artificial nails?"

"Good question."

"Anything else?"

"No. There were no bruises or anything, no signs of sexual activity. I would say that whoever killed this girl must have known her."

"She ran a bridal shop."

Mac stared at the victim a moment. An innocent victim…he did not like the way this looked. "Thanks, Sid," he said and turned to leave the morgue.

When Mac got back to the lab, he went in to see if Danny and Lindsay had found anything. "There were several fingerprints from the victim of course," Danny said. "Do you know this woman doesn't have so much as a parking ticket?"

"Yes, I heard that," Mac said. "Were there any other fingerprints?"

"Yes," Lindsay replied. "There were fingerprints all over that makeup, but they don't show up in the system, except…" She showed Mac the computer screen. "Whoever this is has been involved in robberies at nail salons and at beauty stores."

Mac scowled at that. "Are you serious?" he asked.

"The weird thing about it…the only things taken were artificial nails and nail polish."

Mac had to absorb that a moment. "So, you're telling me that someone is going around stealing nails and nail polish and now they have escalated to murder?" he asked.

Danny looked over Mac's shoulder. "That's the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard," Danny said. "You know how women are about beauty products."

Lindsay thumped Danny on the forehead. "That is just mean," she said.

"Ow."

"You don't know that it's a woman. Maybe there's some maniac man out there who likes fake nails. Maybe he wants them for his silicon dolls."

Mac looked at them both. "Are you two done?" he asked.

"Oh, just wait, Mac," Danny said. "After all the fascination and loving dwindles a little, then you find out who the person really is."

Lindsay gave him a fake glare. "You just want to argue," she said.

"I do like to argue with you sometimes and get your feathers all ruffled."

Mac shook his head. "Okay, is there anything else?" he asked.

"Nothing yet," Danny said.

"I brought you a sample from the victim's nails," Mac said and gave the sample to Danny. "I also have the bullet." He gave that to Lindsay. "Get those analyzed." Mac turned and left the lab. He smiled. He looked forward to playing around with Christine like that.

Lindsay hit Danny on the shoulder. "You're just terrible," she said.

Danny moved over to her. "I want to show you how terrible I can be," he said in her ear.

"Get your mind on this case."

"Yeah, yeah, it's always something about a dead body."

"Well, if the person was alive, we wouldn't have to figure out who killed her."

"Ha, ha, ha."

Mac went back to his office and added the new evidence into his report. He tried not to laugh because murder was never funny, but that was not what he was having trouble with, it was the fact that the woman was…murdered because of fake nails? He rubbed his face. He could not believe that…someone would risk going to prison for life because of fake nails? He thought they must be looking for a mentally ill person.

Just as Mac was finishing his writing, Danny came into his office. "The substance on the victim's nails is nail glue," he said.

Mac nodded. "That's what I thought," he said.

Danny folded his arms. "Are we looking for someone who murdered someone over fake nails?" he asked.

Mac shook his head. "I don't know," he said. "But it is looking more and more that way."

"You think this is connected to all those robberies at the beauty products stores?"

"Could be but no one was killed in those robberies and they were done in broad daylight when no one was looking."

Danny shook his head in amazement. "How does a person get to the point of stealing beauty products?"

"I don't know but I guess we better find out. We need to look at the victim's schedule and see if she was meeting someone at her apartment about a wedding dress. She had several dresses in a closet in what was apparently her sewing room, and she had some on manikins in the room. She must have designed a lot of them herself."

"But that has nothing to do with beauty products."

Mac thought a moment. "Brides want to look their best," he said.

"But nails? Come on."

"I don't think this has anything to do with the wedding dresses but the person could have used that to get to her," Mac said. "She would let someone in to show them a dress."

Mac went into the lab and got the victim's logs that she kept in her sewing room. "We will have to go through her shop as well to see if she had things written down there but I will look at this first," he said.

Mac sat down at his desk and opened the log book. She had definitely kept a record of her customers and what they bought, their dissatisfactions and everything. He looked at the last logs she had written which included a meeting at her apartment at around 8 pm the night before. He knew from Sid's report that the victim had been dead at least twelve hours. She was definitely killed around the time she had that meeting. The only thing that was written on the meeting page was "Darla". He thought this person must be someone the victim knew if she only wrote her first name. He looked back a few pages and found that "Darla" was written on a few others so he assumed that this woman must be consulting the victim about a dress.

"We need to find out who this Darla is," he said. "She was meeting with the victim…or was supposed to be when she was killed. Let's go to the victim's shop."

"I'll be ready," Danny said. He went into the lab and took off his lab coat. "We're going to the victim's shop."

"Get me something to eat on the way back," Lindsay said. "I want a pepperoni pizza with black olives and bell peppers."

"Is that it?"

"For now. If I think of anything else I'll call you."

Danny patted her belly and kissed her cheek. "I love you," he said.

Lindsay smiled. "I love you too."

Danny went out into the hall and met Mac on the way to the elevator. "I guess if we find this Darla woman we should find out if she likes cosmetics," Danny remarked.

"I guess," Mac replied. "I can't help but think that this case is going to be one of those that will haunt us for years to come."

"I get the same feeling."

They got into the elevator and went down to the Avalanche. "So, are you getting nervous?" Danny asked.

"A little," Mac admitted. "But I know I'm doing the right thing."

"Good. Let's stop and get something to eat on the way back. Lindsay is having pizza cravings again. I tell ya, they're going to be at a loss when she has this baby. They'll wonder what happened to all their money."

Mac laughed. "So, are you hoping either way?" he asked.

"I hope we get a boy this time. I'm already outnumbered. I want to even it up a little."

"Must be nice to have a family."

"It is. I don't know what I did without one."

Mac knew. He was glad his cycle of loneliness was almost over…


	5. Chapter 5

Mac and Danny arrived at Alissa's Creations and found that the store was open. They looked at each other. "Maybe someone works with her," Danny said.

They went into the store, and a loud bell chimed as the door opened. "I'll be right with you!" someone called from the back.

"You think she doesn't even know her partner is dead?" Mac asked.

"Maybe not," Danny replied. "Or she killed her."

Soon, a woman came from the back. She had black hair and blue eyes and she was dressed for business in a designer blue suit. She was surprised to see two men in the shop. "May I help you?" she asked. "We don't sell tuxedoes but I can recommend a shop for you."

"We're not here to buy anything," Mac said. He showed her his badge. "I am Detective Mac Taylor. And you are?"

"Clarissa Newton. What is this about?"

Mac frowned. "We're here about Alissa Newton." He could not help but notice the resemblance of this woman and the victim.

"That's my twin sister. Is there something wrong?"

"I'm afraid there is, Ma'am. She was found dead this morning."

The woman gasped and Mac thought she would faint. "Come over here and sit down," he said and helped the woman to sit down.

Danny wished he had just let Jo come with Mac now. He hated having to deliver news like that but then again, they had not known they were delivering news. Clarissa was crying now and trembling. Mac knew she had nothing to do with her sister's murder. "I'm sorry to have to tell you something like this, Ma'am," he said. "We didn't realize that anyone helped her in the business."

"What happened to her!" Clarissa exclaimed. "Where is…"

"She was murdered."

"Murdered? Why?"

"Well, that's what we're trying to figure out. We need to find out some things about her so we can try and figure out who would have killed her."

"I don't know! Why would anyone kill her? She was a very loving person. She did not have any enemies."

Mac thought this was just a random killing. He did not want to put too much on the woman right now. "Ma'am, is there something we can do for you?" he asked. He did not think he wanted to leave her there alone.

"I want to see my sister," Clarissa said.

"Well, if you want to come with us, we can take you down to the morgue to see her."

"I have to close up the shop and cancel all the appointments today."

Mac nodded. "We will wait for you."

The woman got shakily to her feet and went into the back. Mac looked at Danny. "I hate that," Danny said. "Poor woman."

"I hate to tell her what I think is the reason," Mac said.

Danny frowned. "I was kinda making light of that earlier, but now…this was a good woman, making her living helping people and causing trouble for no one."

"Yeah, and we're going to find out who killed her and they're going to pay."

Soon, Clarissa Newton came back out. Her eyes were very red from crying. "Ma'am, do you need anything?" Mac asked.

"No," Clarissa answered.

"Do you know anyone named Darla?"

"Darla? Yes, we've had a customer by that name. It's not a very common name. Why?"

"Because her last entry in the schedule book for last night just said 'Darla'. Do you know her last name?"

"French."

Mac wrote that in his notepad. Clarissa went with them out to the Avalanche and they headed back downtown. Mac and Danny could hear Clarissa crying in the back seat. Danny looked in the glove compartment and got a package of tissues. "You need tissues?" he asked.

"Thank you," Clarissa said.

Mac was angry now. He wanted to know who killed this woman and if it was over beauty products, he was going to fight to get the longest sentence he could possibly get for them. He had heard stupid reasons for murder, but beauty products took the cake.

They arrived at the precinct and took Clarissa down to the morgue, getting Don Flack in tow as they went. They waited while Sid prepared the body for viewing. Mac pulled Don aside. "I want everything they have on those beauty product robberies," Mac said.

"You think this is connected to that?" Don asked.

"I don't know, but I want to know who killed this woman. She was innocent and her sister there is torn apart, and we're going to get justice for this."

"I'll find everything I can."

"I also want you to find everything you can on a woman named Darla French. She's our first suspect. She was supposed to meet the victim last night around the time of the murder."

Don wrote that down. "Anything else?"

"Not yet, but we haven't been able to question her twin sister there much. She's too broken up."

"I'll get on this."

Mac stood with Clarissa while she viewed the body of her sister. "What happened?" she asked.

"She was shot, Ma'am," Mac said.

"I don't understand this."

Mac nodded to Sid and then he took Clarissa over to a bench to sit down. "Can you tell me anyone who has been hostile toward your sister?" he asked.

Clarissa shook her head. She found it very difficult to think at the moment. "Of course, we've had dissatisfied customers but we can usually fix it and they leave happy," she said. "When you're dealing with brides, you have to expect some drama. They want their day to be perfect and they are nervous and stressed out, but no one has been especially hostile."

"What about Darla French?"

"Darla was one of the more difficult ones but Alissa was going to meet with her last night to try and get the dress fixed. It was just a little too long and it would not have taken much to fix it."

"What about beauty products? Did the two of you deal in anything like that?"

"No. Alissa loved to fix her own self. She loved pretty nails."

Mac frowned. "Did she have a lot of them?" he asked.

Clarissa laughed slightly. "She had a bundle of them." She looked at Mac. "Why are you asking me this?"

"Well, her artificial nails had been removed. Did she get them done at a salon?"

"No, she did her own. Her nails were removed?"

"Yes and we thought that was odd. What kind of nails did she wear yesterday?"

Clarissa thought a moment. "They were pink and had jewels on the, the rhinestones. They were so pretty." Clarissa looked at Mac. "You think someone killed her for those nails?"

"We don't know anything yet, Ma'am," Mac said. "I'm just trying to get all the information I can. Did she always fix her nails up like that?"

"Yes. She had a whole pile of that stuff and all sorts of nails and polish. Were they not there?"

Mac frowned. "Her makeup kits had been rummaged through and we don't know what all was missing."

Clarissa stared at him. "This is absurd!" she said. "Are you telling me that…"

"We don't know."

"But you think it! Someone killed my sister over something like that?"

"Did she have a boyfriend? Any close friends?"

"She didn't have a boyfriend and she and I were close enough and we ran the shop together. We just didn't get out much."

"Do you need someone to drive you home? I can get an officer to drive you."

Clarissa sighed. "I would appreciate that."

"Okay."

Mac called Don and told him to come and take Clarissa home. "I'll be right there, Mac," Don said.

Mac put his phone away and met Don in the hallway with Clarissa. When they were gone, Mac went back up to the lab. Jo met him in the hall. "We have information on that bullet," she said.

Mac looked at the readout. "It was used in two other murders?" he asked.

"Mac, those women had their false nails missing too."

Mac frowned at the computer screen. "Are you saying that we have a serial killer out here who is killing women and stealing their nails?" he asked.

"Oh my word. That sounds so ridiculous, it's hard to say it but that's what it looks like."

"How come this was not put together before?"

"It probably was but you know that since it was only two, and they were discovered in different departments and precincts. I guess they just didn't investigate them together."

"I want all those details so we 'can' put them together."

"We've requested the other cases but you know how long that can take."

Mac nodded. "Too long for the victim's sister." He looked at Jo. "I hated to have to tell her that we think her sister was murdered because of her artificial nails."

Jo shook her head. "I would hate it too," she said. "Are we sure that's the reason?"

"Her sister said she didn't have a boyfriend and they didn't get out much because they ran the shop together."

"This just makes me feel terrible. That poor woman, killed for that reason."

"We have to find out who did this. I want that evidence and information as soon as we get it."

"I'll get it to you."

Mac went to his office and sat down behind his desk. He sighed and rubbed his face. He looked at the picture of Christine and thought of the fact that he had not ate any lunch. He did not feel like eating. He was almost sick over this case they were in. He thought there must be something else to it besides this beauty products stuff. He could not understand why anyone would steal false nails either. It was puzzling.

Just then, Mac's phone rang. "Taylor," he answered.

"Mac, I thought you might stop by for lunch," Christine said.

Mac frowned and looked at his watch. "I didn't really feel like eating."

"You mean you haven't ate anything for lunch?"

"No. This case is so frustrating and confusing, I just don't feel like eating."

"I guess you can't tell me about it, can you?"

"No. I wish I could but…" Mac looked out of his office to see if anyone was looking that way. "The victim was shot."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, and she owned this bridal shop with her twin sister."

"Oh, Mac. That's awful."

"We don't know who killed her, but whoever did it took her artificial nails off and they had rummaged through her beauty products."

Christine was quiet a moment. "And you think…"

"There were two other murders like this and there has been a string of robberies of beauty stores and the only things taken were artificial nails and polish."

"And you think all this is connected?"

"I don't know yet but we're looking into it."

"That's hard to believe."

"I know. Don't let anyone know I told you that."

"Don't worry. You can trust me."

"I know." Mac was quiet a moment. "I just watched that woman break down and…it's hard to take sometimes."

"Why don't you come over to the restaurant tonight and we'll have a good meal together and I'll try to make you forget some of it?"

Mac smiled slightly. "I'm sure you can," he said. "What are we going to eat?"

"Oh, I'll think of something very tasty."

"I'll talk to you later."

"Okay. Don't let it get you down too much."

"I'll try. I'll see you this evening."

Mac ended the call and put his phone away. He wanted to find some more suspects and he hoped that other evidence would bring some light into this case…


	6. Chapter 6

Soon, the evidence from the other cases was at the lab. Mac and Jo took it into the conference room and began going through it. "Why didn't anyone notice this definite signature?" Mac asked as he was looking at the evidence on the other victims.

"Mac, are you suggesting a serial killer?" Jo asked.

"You can't deny that that is what it looks like."

"So, what do they do, wait until they see a woman walking around with nails that they like and then kill them for them?"

Mac shook his head. "I don't know. Maybe this is a guy and he just does that so everyone will know he did. They all do it. They have these signatures that they leave so that everybody will know the same person did it and so that the signature will be seen. It's like a bragging right."

"Yes, I know."

Mac laid the pictures of the other two victims on the table and the picture of the current victim. "They all had black hair," he said. "Maybe he looks for dark haired women and ones with nails like these."

"But how does he know the nails are fake? How does he know that they don't have their nails grown out like that and have them painted like that?"

"Good question."

"Maybe this person gets acquainted with these women and gains their trust."

"It looked like someone she trusted killed her to me because there was no sign that she struggled with the person," Mac said. "She must have let them in."

"I have to agree with that but if she and her sister were so close, why didn't her sister know if she had a friend?"

"Maybe it was someone who was ordering a wedding dress or who was in the wedding party."

"Darla French."

"Yes. We have to talk to that woman and I want to know who all is on her wedding party. I'm going to get Don and we're going to pay her a visit."

"What about the fact that we think it's a serial killer?"

"Let's just try to keep that quiet right now," Mac said. "If we can't find anyone, we'll do something then."

"Okay."

Mac made notes about everything and then went down to get Don. Don was sitting at his desk when Mac walked in. "You got that address on Darla French?" Mac asked.

"I have," Don replied.

"Well, we're about to pay her a visit."

They went out to the Avalanche. "So, you think this woman had something to do with this?" Don asked.

"I don't know," Mac said. "This case seems to be connected to two others."

"How so?"

"Because the other two victims' artificial nails were removed. I think that's some sort of signature and the MO was the same. They were both shot one time in the heart. It makes you think these women knew the person who murdered them."

"A serial killer? So you think the beauty store robberies were just a coincidence?"

Mac shook his head. "I don't know," he said. "It just seems odd. We have to find out who all is on Darla French's wedding party."

"You think someone on that wedding party is guilty?"

"It must have been someone she thought she was expecting. Why would this woman have let someone in if she didn't know them?"

"Maybe it had nothing to do with the wedding."

"We're going to eliminate this possibility first."

Mac drove over to Darla French's apartment. If she was not there, they would be going to her work place next. Mac and Don went up to the right floor and knocked on the door. Two women came down the hall who had long platinum blond hair, and they looked like twins. "Hi," one of them said as they both smiled at Don.

"Hi," Don replied.

"Darla's not home today."

"Do you know where she is?"

"She's at the spa getting herself pampered. We're about to go and join her."

"Oh really? Are you two in her wedding party?"

"Yes."

Mac rolled his eyes but at least they were getting some information. "Which spa is she at?" he asked.

"The R and R," the woman said. "It's the best."

Mac wrote that down. He wondered if Christine would go to a spa and get pampered before the wedding. He thought he had not given her enough time to prepare for this. Maybe he would discuss it with her this evening. If she wanted more time, he would agree to that even if he had told everyone already.

As they headed for the elevator, the two women were on each side of Don holding his arms as they walked. Mac followed them listening to them talking to him and giggling. He thought he would remind Don that they were on a case, but they were all going the same way so what was the harm?

They got into the elevator and Mac pushed the lobby button. The women talked to Don on the way down. Mac folded his arms wondering why they did not even seem to notice that he was there…although he was about to get married. How could they know that? They did not know that. Did he look that old? Sometimes he thought of how much older he looked than Christine but she did not seem to think anything about that but he was only six years older than her.

They got down to the lobby and Mac and Don went out to the Avalanche. "They were nice," Don said.

"Oh yeah," Mac replied. "Did you find out where the spa is?"

"Yeah."

"Good. Maybe we can find it without getting lost."

"I'm sure we can."

Mac drove over to the spa as Don told him the way. They started inside and the two blond twins were getting there at about the same time. They grabbed Don's arms again but he told them that he was on official business. "But hey, I'll call you sometime," Don said.

"You do that," one of them said as she gave him a card.

Mac pushed Don in the door and they went over to the counter. "Hi," the woman at the counter said. "Are you here for a treatment?"

"No," Mac said. "We're looking for Darla French." He showed her his badge.

"Well, she is getting a massage right now."

"We need to talk to her."

"Right this way."

The woman led them around to the massage parlor where Darla French was lying on a table with only her bottom covered with a towel. "Miss French, these Detectives are here to see you," the woman from the counter said.

Darla rolled up on her side holding a towel over her. She looked at Mac and Don with piercing blue eyes. "What is this about?" she asked.

"We're sorry to disturb you," Mac said. "I'm Detective Mac Taylor. We can give you time to get dressed if you would like but we need to talk to you."

"I would like to."

"We'll wait out here."

Mac and Don went outside the door and waited. "Well, I don't like talking to people who are not dressed," Don said.

"What's the difference?" Mac asked. "She was covered. No worse than a bikini."

Soon, Darla French came from the room and folded her arms. "What do you want?" she asked.

"Did you know this woman?" Mac asked and showed her a picture of the victim.

"Of course I know her. She designed my wedding dress." Darla stared at Mac a moment. "Is she dead?"

"I'm afraid so. She was found murdered this morning."

"What does that have to do with me?"

"You had an appointment with her last night, didn't you?" Mac asked.

"Yes, but I had to cancel it yesterday. I had rescheduled it for tonight."

"That wasn't written on her calendar. When did you reschedule it?"

"Oh, around two I guess. I left a message on her answering machine."

"So you didn't talk directly to her?"

"No."

"We need a list of everyone who was on your wedding party, and have you ever seen anyone with her when you were meeting with her?"

Darla considered that. "We met at her apartment once to look at the dresses so I could decide which I wanted and while we were doing that, some guy came to the door. I didn't know him."

"Did she say his name?" Don asked.

"I believe when she opened the door, she said 'Wayne'. I'm not sure," Darla said.

"Did you hear anything they talked about? Did you see him?"

"I didn't hear much they were talking about but she seemed to know him. I think he had brown hair."

"And where did you go last night since you didn't have your meeting with Alissa?" Mac asked.

Darla looked at him. "I went and had my nails done," she said and held up her hands.

Mac looked at the manicure of French nails. "Did you talk to Alissa about nails?" he asked.

"We had talked about it before. I couldn't help but notice how she fixed her nails. They were beautiful and I had to wonder how she did her work with them on. It just looked like it would be difficult but she thought it was easy. I like more the natural look. Why?"

"Because her nails were removed."

Darla frowned. "What?"

"Thanks for your time, Ma'am."

Don and Mac walked back up to the front of the place and went out to the Avalanche. "Well, what do you think?" Don asked.

"This may not even be connected to this wedding," Mac said. "I don't know where this is going but I don't think it has anything to do with her business. I think he picks out random victims and it must have something to do with nails. Maybe he looks for women who get their nails done who have dark hair."

"So, you think he works somewhere in the public where he sees these women?" Don asked.

"He has to be somewhere that these women go. We need to find out where the current victim went a lot that lines up with where those other two victims went a lot and find out if there are any workers in those places named Wayne."

"I'll get on that when we get back. I'll go talk to her sister."

"Take Jo with you. She knows how to handle grieving people."

"And I don't?"

"Just take Jo with you."

They went back to the precinct and Mac went up to his office. He wrote more on his report and told the others what they had found out and what they were doing now. "I need to know where all this woman went whether it was for her business or for personal reasons," he said. "I would think this was more about her 'personal' life than about her business. And I think she had something in common with those other two women. We need to work fast so that we can stop this maniac."

Just then, Mac saw Chief Burns coming toward his office. "I'll talk to all of you later," he said to his team and left the conference room.

"Chief Burns," Mac said as he arrived at his office.

"Detective Taylor," Burns replied. "I think we need to talk."

Mac went into his office and Chief Burns followed him in and closed the door. "What are you wanting to talk about?" Mac asked.

"I think you know," Chief Burns replied. "We have three women who were killed the same way and have the same signature, although it's a strange one."

Mac blew out a breath wondering how the chief had found out about this already. "We're working on finding a suspect," he said.

"You mean you don't even have a suspect yet?" Burns asked.

"We're looking for him. We haven't located him yet."

"Him?"

"Yes. We were told about a man who had visited our current victim and his name was Wayne as the witness heard."

"And you suspect him because?"

"He's the only suspect we have right now. We're going to see if these three victims had any places in common and if there are any 'Waynes' working there."

"Well, when rumors of a serial killer start going around, people get nervous."

"I know, and you have to expect people to suspect it since those three women were killed the same way."

"Just find that killer, Mac."

"We will."

Chief Burns left the office and Mac sat down at his desk. He had to expect that. If something was going on, the chief would know about it. He just wanted to find the connection between those two women. He looked at his watch. He did not know if he would make it to his date with Christine that night or not. He had to try and find that serial killer before he decided to kill someone else.

As the evening got later, Mac had more information about the women but had not made a connection between them yet. He studied over the frequent places of the first two victims which they knew more about. Both of those victims had the same gym that they went to every week. Mac thought they could have met a man there, and there was also a beauty salon that they both went to. He wanted to know if this third victim had been to those places. He would have to see if she had a membership at that gym and whether she was a regular at that salon. If either of those was true, they might find their suspect. He figured that beauty salon was closed by now but he thought the gym was probably still open. He thought about calling but he thought if their suspect answered the phone, they might tell him a lie. Then again, he supposed they could either way.

Mac got the phone and called the gym where the first two victims had been members. "Straighten Up Gym," a female voice answered. "May I help you?"

"Yes," Mac said. "I'm Detective Mac Taylor. I need to know if you have a member there named Alissa Newton."

"I'm not allowed to give out that information…unless you have a warrant."

"Can't you just tell me if she was a member? This woman was found murdered this morning. I'm trying to find the person who did it."

"And you think they work here?"

"I don't know. Was that woman a member?"

"Hold on."

Mac waited a moment and looked at his watch again. It was almost 6:00. He had not talked to Christine since that morning. It had been a long day…but seemed like it went fast. The case was complicated and they had been around a lot of clues but they were not closer to the suspect…yet.

The woman soon came back to the phone. "Yes, Detective, there was an Alissa Newton who was a member here," she said.

"Can you tell me if you have anyone working there named Wayne?"

The woman was quiet a moment. "Yes, we do. His name is Wayne Bryant."

"How long has he been working there?"

"I'm not sure. I've only been here six months."

"Did you know Alissa Newton?"

"I think I do recall the name, but I wouldn't say I know her."

"So you wouldn't have noticed whether Wayne Bryant was her trainer or whether he associated with her?"

"Probably not. I mostly take care of the desk."

"Do you know if he is there now or not?"

The woman was quiet a moment. "I think he is, but the gym will be closing at nine," she said.

"Thanks. I appreciate your cooperation."

Mac hung up the phone and then called Don Flack. "I think I found a suspect," Mac said. "Wayne Bryant works at this Straighten Up Gym. Go pick him up for questioning."

"Okay," Don replied. "I'll take Danny with me."

Mac hung up the phone and leaned back in his chair. He would have to wait now and see whether this suspect was guilty or not…


	7. Chapter 7

Don and Danny arrived at the Straighten Up Gym. "I tell ya, I think I could think of some better names for these places than some that I have seen," Danny remarked as he and Don were walking up to the gym.

"I think they just throw any old name on it," Don said. "They know they are going to make money."

"Yeah, I guess so."

They went into the gym and met the same woman at the desk that Mac had talked to earlier. "We're looking for Wayne Bryant," Danny said and showed the woman his badge.

"He's right over there," the woman replied and pointed to a guy on the other side of the workout area.

"Thanks."

Don and Danny headed over that way. The guy was helping a woman at the weight lift machine. "That woman has dark hair," Don pointed out. "You think he's already looking at his next victim?"

"We're going to find out," Danny replied.

They walked over to the weight machine. "Excuse us," Don said. "Are you Wayne Bryant?"

"I am," the man replied. He looked at Don and Danny's badges on their belts. "What's this about?"

Danny showed him a picture of Alissa Newton. "You know this woman?" he asked.

Bryant looked at the picture. "That's Alissa," he said.

"She was found murdered this morning."

The woman sitting in the seat of the weight machine gasped. "Murdered?" she said. She looked at Bryant. "Excuse me." She got up and went over to another area of the gym.

Bryant glared at Don and Danny. "Why are you asking me about this?" he asked.

"Where were you last night around eight?" Don asked.

"I suppose I was here. I usually am."

"You suppose?" Danny asked. "You need to come with us to answer some questions."

Bryant looked like he would cooperate, but just as he was about to come around the weight machine, he took off running toward the back of the gym. "Stop! Police!" Don yelled.

Don and Danny went after the man as he darted around behind a rack of weights and presumably went through the doorway behind it, but just as Don was getting there, the weight rack started falling toward him. Don grabbed Danny and shoved him. "Get out of the way!" Don yelled at the same time and started to jump himself but the top of the weight rack caught Don's ankle. He yelled out with pain as he fell to the floor.

Danny realized what had happened. "Don!" he exclaimed. He ran over to the rack and tried to lift it but could not. "Hey, give me a hand here!"

Two guys in the gym ran over there to help and they got the rack off Don's ankle. Don jerked his ankle up and grabbed it as he was in agony. Danny got over to him and was yelling into his phone at the same time. "They're on their way, Don," Danny said.

Don was trying to calm down and Danny thought he was in a little bit of shock from the pain he just experienced and he could see Don's ankle was swelling. The woman from the front desk came running over there. "Is he alright?" she asked.

"He's in a lot of pain," Danny said.

"I'll get something cold for him." She ran into the other room as other people were standing around watching.

"Hey, Don," Danny said and touched his face.

"I guess I messed up," Don said. "I didn't see him back there."

"I didn't see him either, but you saved my life."

"Well, I guess that was not a mistake."

The woman arrived back with a cold pack for Don's ankle. "People sprain their ankles here," she said. "We put a cold pack to help keep some of the swelling down." She laid the cold pack on Don's ankle and them laid a cold rag on his forehead to help him calm down.

Soon, they heard sirens and the paramedics arrived. Don moaned as he thought of them moving him. He felt like all his nerves were throbbing. "They'll take care of you, Pal," Danny said.

After they had gotten Don on the stretcher, Mac arrived. He walked into the gym looking like he was angry. "The guy got away," Danny said.

"I heard," Mac said in almost a growl. He walked over to Don. "You alright?"

"I don't think I'm going to be chasing anybody for a while," Don said.

"Don't worry about that."

Mac looked at Danny. "What happened?" he asked.

"We came in here and we talked to the guy a few minutes and asked him to come down to the station to answer some questions," Danny said. "He seemed like he was going to cooperate and then he took off running that way, and we thought he went through that doorway there but he was waiting for us and turned over that weight rack. It would have crushed me if Don hadn't shoved me out of the way but it caught his ankle there as he was trying to get out of the way." Danny swallowed hard. "If he hadn't shoved me, I would not be standing here talking to you."

Mac looked at the weights scattered all over the floor. "Well, I guess we can stop looking for our suspect then," he said. "We've obviously found the right person. Now, we have to figure out what his next move will be."

Danny pointed to the woman who had been on the weight machine. "That woman right there was on the weight machine there and Wayne Bryant was there with her," he said. "See any similarities?"

Mac looked at the woman and then walked over to her. "I'm Detective Mac Taylor," he said. "What's your name?"

"Marsha Irons."

"Do you know that guy, Wayne Bryant?"

"I usually talk to him when I'm here."

"Have you had any contact with him anywhere else?"

"We were at the same restaurant a few days ago and we sat together."

Mac looked at Danny and then back at the woman. "You're lucky," Mac said. He looked at the woman's hands. "Can I see your nails?"

The woman looked puzzled but she held out her hand. Mac took her hand and looked at the well-manicured nails that were decorated with jewels. "That guy is a suspect in these murders we're investigating," Mac said. "Judging from what has happened, we may be on the right track. If he comes to your door, do not let him in. Get security to walk you to your car. If he comes to your door, call the police right away." Mac gave her his card. "You can call me. This is very serious. You may have been his next target."

The woman looked terrified. "Why?" she asked.

Mac shook his head. "We don't know," he said. "But he seems to target dark haired women with manicured nails."

The woman frowned. "That's bizarre."

"It always is, but just be cautious until we catch this guy. Tell your neighbors about him so they can be on alert."

The woman nodded. "Can you walk me to my car?" she asked.

"We'll escort you home if you like," Mac said. "But first, I want you to come to the station and tell us everything that you know about the guy…anything that he might have talked about trying to win your trust."

"I'll try but I don't know much."

"Whatever you can tell us might help."

Mac watched as the ambulance pulled away with Don. He wanted to find that guy who did this. He was more certain that they had found their serial killer and he was certain that he was about to target the woman he had just met too. As he was standing there thinking, his phone rang. "Taylor," he answered.

"Hi, Taylor," Christine said. "Are you coming tonight?"

Mac frowned and sighed. "I'm afraid not," he said. "I'm sorry."

"What happened?"

"We have a serial killer and I think we've found the right suspect. Don's been injured and we have a witness to talk to. I think it's going to be a long night."

"What if I bring you something to eat at your office?"

Mac considered that. "I guess that would be fine," he said.

"Even big shot detectives need to eat," Christine said.

"You're right."

"I'll see you later."

Just then, Mac saw a reporter coming toward him. "I'll talk to you later, Christine," he said. He ended the call.

Jennifer Walsh walked up to Mac. "Detective Taylor," she said. "What is this I hear about a serial killer?"

"I don't have anything to tell you about that," Mac replied. "We're still working on this case and you don't need to be trying to stick your nose in. You could jeopardize the case."

"Or just show you up."

Mac frowned. "Be careful what you report."

"Is there a dangerous killer out there? Who is he?"

"You can say this…yes, there is a killer out there and we intend to stop him."

"You know who he is, don't you?"

"No comment."

Mac turned to walk away. "Detective Taylor, you can't keep it a secret if there is a serial killer in this city," Jennifer said.

Mac just kept walking and went to the Avalanche. Danny climbed in and they headed back to the office. "So, when are we going to announce that there is a serial killer?" Danny asked.

"I'll let the chief decide that," Mac said. "He will probably announce it tonight."

When they arrived back at the precinct, they took Marsha Irons in and put her in an interrogation room. Danny stayed with her while Mac went up to the lab to get his file. Jo was still there. "What is going on?" she asked. "Don was injured?"

"Yes," Mac said. "I don't know how bad it is yet. We have a witness downstairs who knows some about the suspect. We have to talk to her and find out anything she may know that could help us find him. She was about to be his next target."

"You want me to talk to her?"

"Sure. She had been going to that gym and he had met her at a restaurant before and sat at the table with her. She thought it was just by chance but I have a feeling that he was watching her and she also has manicured nails."

"What is the thing about the manicured nails?"

"I don't know but I'm trying to figure that out."

Mac and Jo went to the elevator and just as they were about to walk in, Christine was coming out. "Hi," she said.

Mac had not been expecting her yet. "Hi," he replied.

"I'll take this," Jo said as she took the folder. "You go ahead with this."

Mac let her take the folder and led Christine back to his office. "I'm sorry that I couldn't make it tonight," he said.

"Don't worry about that," Christine said. "Just make sure you make it to the wedding."

"About that…" Mac sat down on the couch.

"Oh, you're not having second thoughts are you?"

Mac looked at her. "No, I just want you to know that if it's too much for you to get ready before then, we can wait a while. I don't want you to feel rushed."

Christine leaned over and kissed him. "Mac, I love you and it's not too much trouble. I don't have to have a huge, extravagant wedding that costs thousands of dollars. We will be just as married as anyone else and besides, I'm enjoying it. Are you getting cold feet?"

Mac smiled. "Absolutely not. I will marry you no matter how long it takes."

They kissed again and then Christine took out the dish she had brought for Mac. "Since you were so interested in fries yesterday, I brought you popcorn shrimp and hush puppies, your favorite, and fries along with a salad," she said. "And for dessert, I brought you a piece of that lemon pie that you love so much."

"You're spoiling me," Mac said. "Don't tell me…you have a bottle of water in there for me to drink?"

Christine laughed. "Oh no, I have some of my homemade lemonade for that." She took out a covered cup.

Mac smiled and looked at her. "I appreciate all this but…" He looked out of his office and frowned as he saw the chief coming that way.

Christine looked around and saw who Mac was looking at. "I'm not getting you in trouble, am I?" she asked.

"No," Mac said. "But you better go. I love you and I thank you for all this."

"I love you too." Christine kissed him again and then left as the chief was coming in.

Mac went over to his desk and set the food down there as he sat down in his chair. "Detective Taylor," Chief Burns said. "So you located a suspect?"

"Yes and he injured Don Flack," Mac said.

"I heard. This person is at large?"

"Yes. And I think it's time to let this city know that there is a serial killer. He was targeting his next victim. If we had not found him when we did, she could have been dead soon. Jo is down there talking to her now."

"So, how is Don?"

"I haven't heard anything yet."

"You're coming with me to that press conference. People trust you. We need a picture of the suspect."

"I'll be ready."

"I'll let you know when it is." The chief looked at the food on Mac's desk. "Must be nice."

"What's that?" Mac asked.

"To have someone to bring you food like that."

Mac scowled a moment. "It is. I'm getting married this Friday and going away for the weekend."

"Yes, I heard about that. I hope we have this case solved by then or it's going to be hard to let you go like that."

Mac had been afraid of that. "I know, but I'll do what I have to."

"I'll be in touch."

Mac sat down at his desk as the chief left. He hoped he could get married like they planned. He could smell the food Christine had brought. He was hungry too so he started eating. He would wait until Jo and Danny got done talking to the witness and then he would get involved again…after all, it was true…everyone has to eat.


	8. Chapter 8

Mac finished his meal and leaned back in his chair. It was not long until Jo and Danny came back up there from talking to Marsha Irons. "Well," Jo said as she dropped the file on Mac's desk. "She didn't really know anything that would lead us to that suspect."

"The chief is going to have a press conference and let everyone know that there is a serial killer," Mac said. "It's going to be a long night."

"So, how do we find this guy?"

"I don't know. We'll have to get his picture out there and see if anyone knows him."

Mac looked at Jo. "Don't worry about the wedding," he said. "If we can't get married Friday, we'll have to just wait."

"That's just not even fair," Jo said.

"Jo, it goes along with the job."

"Mac, your wedding day is supposed to be the most important day of your life, and it's supposed to be special."

"I know that, Jo. I want it to be special for Christine. She's never been married."

"It doesn't matter. It's supposed to be special for you too."

Just then, Mac's phone rang and it was the chief. "Come downstairs, Mac," Chief Burns said. "We're about to let the public know about this."

"I'll be down in a few minutes," Mac said. He ended the call and stood up. "I have to get to the press conference. He took his tie off the coat rack and started putting it on.

Jo took the tie. "I'll tie it for you," she said.

Mac sighed. "Jo, I have been tying my own ties for a long time," he said.

"It doesn't matter. I want to make sure it looks good if you are going to wear it."

"Jo, I'm going to be appearing before the public. I want to wear a tie."

"Okay, okay."

"Nothing wrong with looking dressed up."

Jo finished tying the tie and then fixed Mac's collars. "Good luck," she said.

"Thanks, but I'm not the one making the speech."

"I'm sure you will have to get in it though."

Mac went to the elevator and went downstairs. The chief met him in the lobby. "I have the picture ready," Mac said. "I'm sure he's the one who is doing all this."

"Good," Chief Burns replied. "You're going to have to give them the details."

Mac followed him outside and as soon as they walked out, cameras started flashing in their faces. Mac hated those flashes. They made spots before his eyes and it took a while for them to go away. The chief walked up to the mic and began his speech about the serial killer. After he talked a while, he said, "I have Detective Mac Taylor here to give you more details about this."

Mac walked up to the mic. He hated talking to a crowd of reporters. They all wanted to ask questions and he could not answer all those questions. He held a picture of Wayne Bryant. "This man is the suspect in these killings," he said. "His name is Wayne Bryant. We don't know of any aliases he may have. We believe he is responsible for three murders in this city which are quite similar to each other. The victims were all killed with the same weapon. We determined that through ballistics testing. We also have a distinct signature that the killer leaves which I am not revealing at this time. His victims seem to be dark haired women. Don't let any strangers into your home and don't trust anyone that you don't know. If you see this man, call the police immediately and do not confront him. He is a dangerous killer and will not hesitate to kill. Thank you."

Mac walked away from the mic as the reporters all started trying to ask him questions. He had no time to answer questions and he would not reveal anything else. He went back into the precinct and the chief came in. "Taylor," Chief Burns said.

Mac stopped and looked at him. "Yes?"

"I hope you can catch this guy by Friday."

Mac frowned. "Me too." He turned and went on to the elevator. He did not want to talk about it anymore. He did not want to tell Christine that they had to wait about their wedding. She always said she understood when he had to break a date, but he had to think that she was upset about it. He went back up to his office and put the file back in the drawer in his desk. Then he headed out to go and see Flack. He wanted to know how he was doing. He was afraid that injury was more than just a bruise.

Mac went down to the parking garage and over to his Avalanche. As he was getting in, his phone rang. "Taylor," he answered.

"You'll never catch me, Detective Taylor," someone said in a whispery voice.

Mac frowned. "Who is this?" he asked. "Bryant?"

"Aw, you're a good guesser."

"You want to start taunting me? You're not going to get away with killing those women. I'm going to see to that personally, and if you think you're going to murder another one, I'm going to be right behind you. You're going to leave something that is going to lead me right to you."

"I may have to switch to blonds," Bryant said. "I see a real pretty one."

Mac swallowed hard as he thought of Christine's blond hair. "Why don't you give yourself up?" he asked. "Why are you doing this?"

"You would like to know that, wouldn't you?"

"Yes, I would."

"Catch me if you can…and I hope you don't miss your wedding because of me."

Mac thought his blood ran cold. How did that maniac know about that? "Where are you?" he asked.

"Catch me if you can, Detective Taylor."

Mac heard the call end. He threw the phone down and cranked the Avalanche. He sped out of the parking garage and turned the siren on. He had to get to Christine's restaurant.

As he slung the Avalanche around the corner of the street that the restaurant was on, he could see a car leaving in a hurry. He was torn as to what to do. If he went after that car…he had to see if Christine was okay. He skidded to a stop in front of the restaurant and ran up to the door. The restaurant was closed and he found that the door was locked. He knocked on the door and knocked again.

Christine heard someone banging on the front door of the restaurant. She looked at Sandra who worked there with her. "Mac didn't say anything about coming by," she said.

Sandra peeped through the window from the back and saw the front door. "Christine!" they heard Mac yell.

Christine gasped and ran to the front. She hurried to the door, hearing that desperation in Mac's voice. He looked so relieved when he saw her she knew something was wrong. She opened the door and let him in. "Mac, what is going on?" she asked.

Mac cleared his throat. "Nothing," he said. He was not even sure that guy had been looking at Christine. He could not panic every time something happened.

"Mac Taylor, you are not telling me the truth."

Mac looked at her. "I…it's nothing," he said. "I was just making sure you're okay."

Christine stared at him a moment. "Why?" she asked and folded her arms.

Mac knew when she got in that stance, he might as well not try to hide anything. "I'm worried about this serial killer," he said.

Christine frowned. "You could have called me," she said.

"I wanted to see you," Mac replied.

"Were you that worried?"

"I was."

"Why, Mac? What happened?"

Mac shifted on his feet. He felt like he was being grilled for information. "He called me," he said.

"He called you? What did he say?"

"He said…he said he might have to start targeting blonds."

Christine's mouth dropped open. "And you think he means me?" she asked.

"I don't know. He said something about my wedding."

"How would he know about that?"

"I don't know." Mac pulled her to him and hugged her. "It just scared me."

Christine put her arms around him, remembering when she had been held captive all those days. "Are you done here?" Mac asked.

"Yes. We were just finishing up cleaning," Christine said. "But I was going to start working on the invitations and everything."

"I'll take you home," Mac said. "I want you to go with me to visit Don and then I will take you home and help you a while."

"Okay. Just let me get my things and let Sandra know."

"Is there someone else here?"

"Yes."

"She can leave at the same time."

"Okay."

Christine started back to the kitchen. She knew Mac did not get that upset over nothing. She was almost frightened now. She told Sandra that they were leaving and they would walk her out too. They all went out and Sandra got into her car. Mac watched her leave and then he looked at Christine sitting beside him. "I didn't mean to scare you," he said.

"I would rather know than be killed," Christine said.

Mac cranked up and headed for the hospital. He had to see whether Don was okay or not…well, he knew he was not okay but he wanted to know how bad he was. He drove to the hospital and they went inside. Don was not in a room yet, but they were allowed to go into the ER where he was. When they walked in, Don was asleep. Mac walked over to the bed. "Hey," he said.

Don was a little startled and opened his eyes. He looked at Mac a moment. "Mac," he said and relaxed again.

"How are you?"

Don shook his head. "I thought they would kill me to get an x-ray, but it's definitely broken." He looked at Mac. "I think it's bad."

Mac frowned. "I'm sorry, Don. I should have…"

"Don't even say that. What would you have done if you had been there? You might have gotten crushed by that thing. What good would that do?"

"Well, that guy called me tonight. He's taunting me now."

"What about that woman?"

"She didn't know anything that would lead us to him. Do you remember anything distinct about him?"

Don thought a moment. "I remember thinking that he smelled like sweet ants or something," he said.

Mac scowled. "Sweet ants?"

"Yeah. You know that sickly sweet smell. I know it when I smell it because they used to live around my grandma's house and they have a distinct smell."

"And you think that guy smelled like them?"

Don shook his head. "I know that sounds crazy but yeah."

"Maybe he is living somewhere that sweets are made," Mac said.

"That would definitely attract sweet ants."

"Maybe he's at some abandoned warehouse or something."

"Could be."

"You take it easy," Mac said. "I'm taking Christine home tonight."

Don stared at him. "Did that guy threaten her?" he asked.

"I'll talk to you tomorrow, Don," Mac said and headed for the door.

Don knew Mac was not telling him everything but he would not press him or he would just get angry and try to keep them from knowing anything. He would inform Jo though and she would keep an eye on that.

Mac and Christine went down to the Avalanche. "You didn't tell him," Christine said.

"I didn't want to tell him," Mac replied. "He can't do anything about it but worry."

They went to Christine's apartment and went inside. Mac yawned as he hung his coat on the coat rack. It had been a long day and he was full after eating all that food Christine brought him. "I'll fix us a drink," she said.

"No," Mac said. "I don't want anything. I'm still full from that meal you brought me."

"Well, I guess we can just get busy then. I'll bring everything to the table and we'll make out the invitations."

Mac frowned and looked at Christine. "You know that if we don't catch this serial killer before Friday, they won't let me go," he said.

"We can still get married," Christine replied. "We can go on a honeymoon any time."

"You don't have to act like you won't be disappointed."

"Mac, I want to marry you even if I have to stay here."

"What am I going to do, run down to the church or wherever and run down the aisle, get married, and then run back to the office before we can even kiss?"

"Let's just work on this. We will see what happens."

Mac flopped down on the couch and sighed. He did not like feeling trapped. Christine soon brought all the stuff for the wedding in there. Mac looked at all the stuff. "You're making your own flower arrangements too?" he asked.

Christine smiled. "I'm not just a chef," she said.

"You're much more than that."

"And you're much more than a detective too."

Mac looked at the invitations that Christine had made. They had red roses on the front and red decorations on the inside with the location and even written. "Those are pretty," he said.

"I have some for your team and I also have one for you to hang on the bulletin board or whatever."

"Great." Mac frowned wondering what he would tell everyone if he could not even make it to the wedding.

Mac soon got so sleepy that he leaned back on the sofa while Christine went to get a marker. He was too tired to keep working on that stuff. Christine came back and found him asleep. She was tired herself but she figured Mac was going to stay there anyway. She thought he was more worried that he was admitting. She packed up everything, and they had gotten a lot of it done. She pulled Mac's feet up onto the sofa and put a blanket over him as he just kept on sleeping. She would feel safer with him there.


	9. Chapter 9

In the middle of the night, Mac was awakened by his phone. He almost rolled off the sofa as he thought he was in bed but he grabbed the edge of the coffee table. He looked around him and realized he was on Christine's sofa. He rubbed his eyes and got his phone off his side. "Taylor," he answered.

"Detective Taylor, we have a lead on that suspect," Detective Lovato said.

Mac sat up. "Where?" he asked.

"Well, Don said that the guy smelled like sweet ants, so I started digging into Bryant's medical records since that sounded familiar. It wasn't sweet ants, it was diabetes. Bryant is a diabetic, and his condition requires insulin, so he is going to have to get that prescription somehow or he will die."

Mac absorbed that. "Good work, Lovato," he said. He looked at his watch…2 am. Why was it always 2 am? "I'll be in soon."

"Okay."

Mac ended the call and looked toward the hall that led down to Christine's bedroom. He wondered if he should go down there and tell her he had to go or if he should just leave a note. He shook his head. He did not like the thought of just leaving a note. What if she didn't even see it? After all, she was going to be his wife in…he sighed with that. It was not long.

Mac got off the sofa and straightened his clothes a little and he thought he better make a stop at the bathroom on the way down there. He was glad there was a bathroom in the hall. After that, he went on to Christine's room door and grabbed the knob…then he thought he might ought to knock. What if she slept nude? He knocked on the door and waited and then knocked again.

"Mac?" Christine said.

"Christine, I have to go," Mac said.

He did not hear anything for a moment and then Christine opened the door. "You have a lead?" she asked.

Mac nodded as he looked at her light pink silk robe. "Mac Taylor," Christine said. "Get out of here."

Mac smiled. "I just thought I would tell you that I was leaving."

Christine kissed him and pretended to wrap her robe around her in a teasing way. Mac chuckled at that. "I'll see you later," he said and then became serious. "If I'm not here to take you to work, be careful."

Christine stroked his cheek and kissed him again. "Don't worry."

Mac stared at her a moment. He knew he would be worried all day. "I have to go," he said. With that, he turned and left.

Mac felt angry as he walked down the hall toward the elevator. He did not like someone threatening Christine. She made his life complete again and he would not let anyone mess that up. He went down to his Avalanche and climbed in. He yawned as he cranked the truck. He hated getting up early in the morning like this but it was part of the job.

Mac walked into the precinct and Jamie Lovato was waiting for him. "Hi, Mac," she said as though she were wide awake.

Mac looked at the readout she had given him. "Now, we have to find out where he has prescriptions," he said. "He can't just get this without a prescription."

"You would be surprised. There's a black market for just about everything."

"I know but he has to have a prescription somewhere."

"He might have gotten it refilled so that he can have enough to last for a while."

Mac shook his head. "He's a diabetic and he's running around killing women," he said. "He worked at that gym and that's where he met them. How did he pick his victims?"

"You said something about those nails?"

"Yeah, they had all had their artificial nails removed."

"That sounds strange. Maybe something about them irritated him."

Mac considered that. "These women were going to the gym with those on," he said.

"Maybe they're protective of the nails and it interferes with their workout with him," Lovato said.

Mac scowled at that. "You think he would kill them over that?" he asked.

"Is there ever a reasonable purpose for murder?"

"No, but to kill them over those nails?"

"But he's definitely unstable. He probably saw it differently than a normal, rational person would. He probably got angrier and angrier until he just murdered them."

"You may be right. He had already picked out his next victim and she was wearing artificial nails," Mac said. "Maybe they were afraid of chipping a nail and he just got crazy about it."

"Maybe the first victim chipped a nail and yelled at him about it or made a big deal over it," Lovato suggested. "I know some women are very particular about that."

"Well, that's their business, not his."

"I agree, so how do we find him."

"I'll get Adam to find out where this guy has prescriptions and see if he has refilled or how long it has been since he did," Mac said. "You keep trying to find out more."

Mac went up to the lab and found Adam sleeping in the computer lab. "Adam!" he said.

Adam rolled off the couch he was sleeping on and stood up. "Yes, sir!" he said and looked at Mac with sleepy eyes.

Mac shook his head. "Sorry for startling you, but I need you to find out what pharmacy Wayne Bryant uses to get his insulin," he said. "He's a diabetic so he has to get that insulin. See if he has refilled it lately or how long it has been."

"I'll get on it."

Mac went back to his office and sighed. He was still wearing the suit he had on yesterday and he was tired of it. He hung his suit coat on the coat rack and went to the locker room. He had a pair of jeans in there and a t-shirt. He would just get a shower and wear that, and if he had to dress up a little, he would just put on his suit coat with it. He was tired today after that long day yesterday and now he was up again.

After his shower, Mac felt better. He got into the jeans and t-shirt and then put on his sneakers. He wanted to be comfortable today. He was sure everyone would notice that he was not dressed up today, but it did not matter. He was tired. He went back to his office with his feet feeling a little lighter since those shoes he usually wore probably gave him an extra five pounds. He sat down at his desk feeling like he would love to be in bed but he pulled out a folder and started doing paperwork.

Mac stopped and thought about that case. He had not told the facts about those fingernails but they had not been sure about all that last night…or he was not even really sure today. It was an assumption but in the line of work he was in, he had to go on assumptions sometimes whether they panned out or not. If they did not, he had to look for something else. It was not easy to figure out the thinking of a mentally deranged person, and that was what a serial killer was…at least in his book. They picked out some strange reason that they wanted to murder people and developed a signature so that everyone would know they did it, and he supposed they sat and watched the news and looked at the papers to see their fame. He knew that was part of it…the fame. They wanted to be recognized. He supposed there was no way to stop that part of it. The public had to be informed about that.

Mac leaned on his desk as he thought about what he might do to make that guy a little angry and cause him to make a mistake. He knew there had to be a way because he had chased serial killers before and they all had that one thing that they could not tolerate. He frowned as he thought of trying to turn that guy's attention toward him. The man had already threatened Christine, or he thought that was his intention. He had to wonder how Bryant knew so much about him. He thought me must have researched him because he was the one trying to find him now. He had seen that happen too. He would discuss this with Jo and see what she thought about it and Danny too. They would have some insight into this.

Mac worked on paperwork and yawned until he was disgusted, but he had not heard anything from Adam yet. He had to wait until he found something and that took time because he had to go through the legal red tape when it came to medical records and stuff like that. He just hoped the guy had done something so they could track him. He thought someone would surely see the guy and let them know. The man had to be going around somewhere, or he was hiding out now. Mac knew how there were people who paid no attention to television or news too, so there were all those people who would know nothing about this case and they could see the guy and not know anything about him.

As the sun came up, Mac was standing at the window watching the sky change colors. He liked watching the sun come up which he hardly ever got to do unless he was standing right where he was now. His phone rang, and he took it off his side. "Taylor," he answered.

"Mac, I'm at the restaurant," Christine said.

"Okay. Do you have the door locked?"

"Yes. Sandra will be here soon."

"Good. I didn't mean to scare you last night."

"Mac, there are times when a person has to get a little scared, and I would think that is one of them."

"You may be right but I don't like for you to be scared."

"You just catch that criminal for us and then we won't have to worry about it."

Mac smiled. "I'm sorry I fell asleep last night. I was just tired after that long day."

"I felt very safe with you sleeping here."

"Did you?"

"I did. I'll be glad when you're here…or wherever all the time."

"My apartment is bigger than yours. Why don't we live in mine for a while and then we can look for something else?"

"That's fine. I can't wait till Friday."

Mac was quiet a moment. "Me neither," he said.

"Don't worry," Christine said. "Everything is going to be fine."

"If you say so."

"I do."

Mac smiled. "Okay. I'll leave it at that." He saw Jo coming from the elevator now. "I have to go and see what we can come up with to find this guy."

"Be careful."

"I will, and you do the same."

"Bye."

"Bye."

Mac ended that call and then looked out the window again. He wanted to get this mess out of his way. He went to Jo's office where she was putting her purse and sweater away. "Morning," he said.

"Morning," Jo replied. She looked at how Mac was dressed. "You're going casual today."

"I am. I'm tired and I've been here since two this morning."

"Why?"

"Because we have a lead. Our suspect is a diabetic, and he takes insulin. That was why Don thought he smelled like sweet ants."

Jo looked a little confused. "And he smelled sweet?"

"Yes. The thing is, that we're trying to find out what drug store he uses to get his insulin and maybe we can track him somehow if he has to go in and get his insulin."

"How often do diabetics have to pick up their insulin?"

"Well, I did a little research on that and they have to get new bottles at least every thirty days because the insulin expires and doesn't work as well. So if he hasn't picked up his insulin in a while, we can watch to see if he goes in to get it, and if he does, maybe we can track it somehow."

"That's quite a plan if it works," Jo said.

"You got anything better?"

"Not at the moment."

Mac saw Adam coming from the computer lab. "Mac," Adam said as he was coming into Jo's office. "I found the pharmacy where he gets his insulin and the pharmacist told me that Wayne Bryant just called his prescription in for refilling this morning."

Mac stared at the screen. "When do they expect him to pick it up?" he asked.

"Sometime today, I suppose."

Mac hurried back to his office and called Lovato to tell her to come up there. They had to make a plan about this. When Jamie arrived, they gathered in the conference room. "We have to get a plan together to watch for that guy," Mac said. "But we have to make sure he doesn't see us. If he recognizes anybody, he will be spooked easily."

"I could be in the pharmacy," Jamie said. "He wouldn't know me."

"She's right," Jo agreed. "If you were there, Mac, he would easily recognize you."

"I know it can't be me," Mac said. "You could pretend to work in the pharmacy, and we could also have Lindsay there somewhere but you both have to make sure you don't make eye contact with him. He's going to be looking around to spot anybody. You need to look very disinterested but not 'too' disinterested."

"Like he's a customer," Jo said.

Mac wondered if the plan would work. He knew the guy would be nervous and they would have to try to act as normal as possible. He would be around there somewhere watching as well. He intended to get that guy…


	10. Chapter 10

While Jamie and Lindsay were preparing to go undercover at the pharmacy, Mac decided to try something else in case that did not work. He sat at his computer and thought about what he wanted to say and typed it in a memo. He would give Jennifer Walsh a statement if the bit at the pharmacy did not work. He knew he could drive that guy to make a mistake that would lead to his capture. That was his intent and he knew Jennifer would be all too happy to publish it.

Soon, the plan was in motion and Lindsay and Jamie were in the pharmacy. Jamie was behind the counter and Lindsay was working a front cash register as though she were a new trainee. Mac was sitting across the street in a police issue car. He knew no one would think it was a police car. It was an old green car and looked like anything but what a police officer would be driving. Mac did not think it smelled like anything he wanted to drive either.

Jamie stood at the pharmacy counter and put prescriptions in bags while the pharmacist filled them. She thought this was not too bad. She had to make sure she got the right name on the bag but that was not too hard. She just had to check the tags and the labels on the bottles. Of course, she had the regular tech helping her too. She also took prescriptions from people and made sure the birthdate was right.

Lindsay was straightening shelves since there was no one to check out at the time. She was wearing a red smock so that she would look like she belonged there. She watched the door every time someone came in but she had not seen anyone who looked like their suspect. Jamie had not seen anyone who looked like him either.

Finally, at around 11 am, when everyone was considering giving up, Wayne Bryant walked into the pharmacy. Mac glared at the man as he walked in. "He's in," Jamie said into the wire.

"I saw him," Mac replied. "Just let him get comfortable."

Jamie watched the man without seeming to. He was in the line to pick up a prescription. Lindsay positioned herself so she could see him as well. Bryant had his hands in his pockets and was looking around him and shifting from one foot to the other. "He looks nervous," Jamie said quietly.

"He probably is," Mac said. "He must know that his picture is all over the city."

As Bryant got closer to the counter, Jamie moved away from her position so that she could get around to help capture him. Suddenly, he was looking right at her and then he looked around behind him. Then he turned and ran. "He's running!" Jamie exclaimed. "Freeze!"

Lindsay sprang into action as she saw Wayne Bryant running toward the door of the pharmacy. "N.Y.P.D.!" she yelled. "Stop!"

Mac got out of the car across the street and headed that way. He saw Bryant come out of the store in a dead run. "Freeze! Police!" Mac yelled.

Bryant was startled by that but he kept running. He turned down the next alley and kept running. Mac was coming down that side of the street now, and Jamie and Lindsay had come out of the pharmacy. "He went down that alley!" Mac yelled. He turned down the alley and could see Bryant going toward the other end at surprising speed. He called it in to the other officers who were waiting.

Bryant went around the corner of the alley and went to the left. Mac came to the end of the alley and almost slid as he was going around the corner, and then he saw that there was a truck coming down the alley. The truck blew its horn loudly and Mac had to go back into the other alley while the truck went by. Jamie and Lindsay got up to Mac by the time the truck got by and they all went back into the alley. Of course, Wayne Bryant was nowhere in sight but Danny was coming from the other end of the alley.

"No one came out this end!" Danny said.

Mac looked around at the truck that had passed by them. "He may be under that truck!" he said.

Lindsay and Danny went after the truck which was not traveling too fast. Danny called backup to stop the truck if it got out of the alley. Mac and Jamie stayed at the other end of the alley to see if Bryant had ducked into some place down there. There was a red door in the side of the old building. Mac got on one side and Jamie on the other. He reached for the door knob and it was not locked. He jerked the door open and they looked inside with their weapons ready. There was a man in the room inside which looked like a utility room for some sort of factory.

The man threw his hands up. "What is this?" he asked. "There's nothing here to steal."

Mac showed the man his badge. "Did you see someone come in here a few minutes ago?" he asked.

"I just came in here."

Mac and Jamie went on through the utility room and out into the main part of the factory which looked like it was a tool factory. Mac did not think he had ever seen so many hammers in one place. He moved over to the person who was working at the table in front of them. "Did you see someone come running through here?" he asked.

The man stared at him a moment. "I did see someone come through a few minutes ago," he said.

"Did he have brown hair? He was wearing a brown shirt and jeans?"

"Yeah. He ran out there."

The man pointed to the other part of the factory. Mac frowned and looked at Jamie. "He could be anywhere in there," he said. "Or he could have already gone out the other side."

Mac called for backup to come to the front of the factory they were in. "He may have already gone out but we don't know," he said.

Mac and Jamie went on out into the factory. "He could be pretending to be a worker in here too," Mac said. "Let's spread out and be careful."

Mac moved to his left and began looking down the aisles, but they were much too long for him to see all the way to the other end. He moved on down a few aisles and then he saw a man coming that way who did not look at all happy. "What are you doing?" he asked. "You can't be in here with a weapon."

Mac showed him his badge. "Have you seen a man in here who doesn't work here?" he asked. "Someone came in here that we were chasing."

"I haven't seen anyone except you."

"Well, I'm not leaving until I know he's not in here, so get out of my way."

Mac went around the man and went on down the aisle and looked down each parallel aisle as he went. To say it was noisy in there would have been an understatement. Mac thought his ears would be ringing by the time he got out of that place. He could see that most of the people were wearing earplugs. He could hear why they were doing that.

Jamie was going around the other way doing much the same as Mac was doing but she had not seen Bryant either. She had paid close attention to the people who were standing at the tables working. None of them bore any resemblance to Wayne Bryant.

Mac moved on around to another area of the factory where the finished products were stored. He could see large boxes full of hammers and any other kind of tool one could think of. He moved on around the large metal shelf which went all the way up to the ceiling almost and had boxes stacked in it. It was much quieter here because of the boxes and the sound could not bounce around so much. Mac listened as he moved slowly into the aisle that went do between the shelves.

Jamie was coming around the end of the tables when she saw some movement in one of the shelves where Mac was walking down the aisle. She tried to yell to warn Mac but he could not hear her over all the noise…

Mac kept walking down the aisle he was in and suddenly, he heard something above his head. He backed up fast and saw that a box was turning over to fall off the shelf over him. He gasped as he saw wrenches starting to fall from the box. Everything seemed to be in slow motion as he jumped to get out of the way. He felt the wrenches hit his legs as he crashed to the concrete floor. He lay there a moment feeling a little stunned but he saw that Wayne Bryant was running toward the other end of the shelf and jumped off that end and went out a door that was on that end. "Hey!" Mac yelled. He tried to get up fast, but his muscles protested that move as they were sore from being pelted by about a hundred wrenches. He got up and had to limp over to the door. He got the door open but he did not see Bryant anywhere.

Mac grimaced as Jamie came up behind him. "Are you alright?" she asked. "I saw what was happening and tried to yell at you but you couldn't hear me."

"I'll be alright," Mac said but one of his knees was very sore as were his shins too. As a matter of fact, they seemed to be getting sorer by the minute.

Jamie went out into the alley and Mac went out there too although he knew he was not going to be chasing anyone right now. He stood there and waited while Jamie looked around, but she did not see the man. "He's gone," she said.

Mac shook his head. "How did he evade us like that?" he asked.

"I don't know, but he seems to like injuring people. First, Don and now, you."

Mac grimaced. He wondered if he could walk back to that pharmacy but he did not have to. He would let Danny bring the Avalanche and pick him up. He supposed he would have to go to the ER and let them see about his legs. He knew they were not broken but they were sure sore with bruises. He would call Jennifer Walsh when he got out of the ER and tell her his plan. He was sure she would eat up a story like that.

Danny soon came around in the Avalanche. "We looked everywhere," he said. "He's nowhere to be found."

"Yeah, and he will be even more wary now," Mac said. He started to climb up into the Avalanche and thought he would not make it. His muscles did not want to do such a thing but he made it anyway. "Take me to the ER."

Danny closed the door and went around as Lindsay was getting back into the Avalanche. Jamie would stay with the others and case the area to see if anyone had seen that guy. It would be another long day…


	11. Chapter 11

When Mac got out of the ER, he knew where all the muscles in his legs were. He did not want to be on crutches but the doctor advised him to take them anyway. Mac did not think his legs had ever been so sore even from exercising too much. His left knee was wrapped up. Apparently, one of those wrenches had hit him right in the back of that knee and he had hit the front of it on his way down to the floor. He was even angrier now. As he was about to walk out of the hospital, Christine came in. "Mac," she said and came to him. "Are you alright?"

"Yes," Mac said.

"You didn't call me."

"Well, I'm not really injured that bad. It's just mostly bruises."

"You're going home, right?"

Mac gave her his knowing look. "You know I'm not going to do that," he said. "We have to figure out how to find that guy."

"And you have a plan?"

"Well, I have an idea."

"I'll go with you."

They got a cab to the lab and went into the precinct. Jamie Lovato met them as they were on their way to the elevator. "Mac, you're going to want to hear this," she said.

"What?" Mac asked.

"While we were all out looking for that guy, he went to a pharmacy on the other side of town that is associated with the one he was in this morning and got his prescription."

Mac blew out a loud breath. "Are you serious?" he asked.

"Yes I am. He got it and now, he can disappear without worrying about that for thirty days."

Just then, Mac's phone rang. Christine took it off his side for him. "Taylor," he answered.

"Hi, Detective. Nice try."

Mac frowned. "You're going to pay for your crimes."

"Oh am I? I don't think you're going to be chasing me for a while."

"I'll still find you. I don't have to chase you."

"Maybe I will just pick you all off one at a time."

"No you won't because we will be ready for you the next time."

"Catch me if you can."

Mac heard the call end. He glared at the phone and then looked at Jamie. "That was him," he said. "He called to gloat."

Jamie shook her head. "It's hard to believe that he would call you like that," she said.

"He knows we can't trace it."

Mac looked at Christine. "But I have a plan," he said. "I'll fill you in later," he said to Jamie.

Mac and Christine went to the elevator and started up to the lab. "What is your plan?" Christine asked.

Mac looked at her. "I have to try and turn the guy's anger toward me," he said.

Christine frowned. "Why?"

"Because if he's angry at me, he might not kill anymore women but it could put you in danger too."

"Mac, you are in no condition to fight anybody."

"I don't intend to fight him."

"How can you know what he will do?"

"I don't know that he will do anything. I intend to make him angry so he will make a mistake."

"How?"

"You'll see."

The elevator doors opened and they walked out into the lab. Jo saw Mac come in and she met them in the hall. "Mac, you should not be here," she said.

"I already told him he shouldn't," Christine said.

"Will you two stop?" Mac asked. "I don't need my legs to sit in a chair."

They followed Mac to his office and he sat in his chair to think a moment. Christine and Jo sat down on the couch. "You're a stubborn man, Mac," Jo said.

"Just makes him all the more charming," Christine said before Mac could say anything.

Mac looked at her with one of his almost shy looks. "I intend to try and get that guy to make a mistake," he said. "He's going to get angry if he is portrayed in the paper for just what he is…a psychopath."

"How are you going to do that?" Jo asked. "Are you attached to some strings?"

Mac smiled slightly. "I have a few that I think I can pull and get a response."

Christine folded her arms and smiled. She thought she loved Mac more every day. "I think he can be devious when he wants to be," she said.

"Well, let me know what to look for," Jo said and left the office. She smiled as she thought of how happy Mac was with Christine.

Mac noticed that there was a letter in his basket on his desk. He picked it up and it only said "Mac Taylor". He got his letter opener and opened it. "What is it?" Christine asked.

"I don't know," Mac said. He took the letter out and noticed that it was from Piper Laboratories. He frowned as he began to read the letter.

Christine had never seen such a look come over Mac's face. She thought his face turned red first and then turned whiter than she had ever seen it. "Mac!" she said. She went over to him. "Are you alright? What is that?"

Mac looked at her as though he had forgotten that she was in the room. "I'm…" He did not know what to say. "I…" He got up and went to the door of the office taking the letter with him. He looked at Christine. "I'll be back." He was limping but he walked to the bathroom. He did not want to deal with those crutches right now.

Christine watched him walk away. She wondered what was going on and Jo came down there. "What's going on?" Jo asked.

"I don't know," Christine replied. "He got a letter and…I don't know. He seems upset."

"Did you see what it said?"

"No."

Mac leaned on the sink in the bathroom and sobbed. He had never been so overwhelmed in his entire life. He held the letter in his hand and he looked at it again. It said that they had found traces of Claire…after all these years. He had given up on getting anything like this. He hardly knew what to do. He had never felt quite like he did now, but then he heard someone knock on the door of the bathroom.

Mac tried to compose himself. He knew that must be Christine at the door wondering if he was okay. He looked at the letter again. He would have to let her know what was going on. After all, she would be his wife in…two days. Mac felt like he wanted to just fall in the floor and cry his eyes out but he went to the bathroom door. Christine was there and she looked very worried. "What is going on?" she asked.

"Come with me," Mac said. He led her down to a room in the lab that did not have glass walls and closed the door.

"Mac, are you alright?" Christine asked.

Mac gave her the letter because he did not think he could tell her. Christine read the letter and her mouth dropped open. She looked at Mac and knew why his face had turned so white. She grabbed him in a tight hug. She had never seen Mac cry before but he was now. She was not sure what to say. He had just been talking about that the day they were in the cemetery.

Mac finally looked up at her and he looked like he was confused. Christine still was not sure what to say but she did not think Mac knew what to say either. He pulled a chair out from the table and sat down. Christine sat down in front of him. "How do you feel?" she asked.

Mac shook his head. "I don't know," he said. "I feel numb and…I don't even know how I feel. I've waited for this news for so many years, and I had accepted that I would never get it. Now, I don't know what to do."

"What do you 'want' to do?" Christine asked.

"I don't know. I'm overwhelmed. There's so much going on this week, I just…" Mac rubbed his face and leaned on his knees. He looked at Christine. "I'm glad you're here though."

"I wouldn't want to be anywhere else."

Mac pulled Christine over into his lap and just held her. He thought he was calming down a little now. He thought he was in a little shock after that news. "I didn't mean to scare you," he said.

"You didn't scare me, I was just concerned."

"I'm not sure what to do." Mac frowned. "There are so many mixed feelings. It's like being overwhelmingly sad and relieved at the same time. I thought I would never have anything. What should I do?"

"Anything you want," Christine said. "Whatever you decide, I'll be with you."

"I know."

When Mac felt better, they left that room and headed back to his office. Jo saw them going back and she came to her office door. "Is everything okay?" she asked.

"Yes," Mac said. "I'm fine."

Mac went on to his office and sat down at his desk again. His grimaced as his legs hurt some when he sat down. He had to get his mind back on the case they were working on. He looked at the letter again and then put it in his desk drawer. He would have to think about that more later. Right now, he had to get his plan into action. He called Jennifer Walsh and told her that he wanted to give her a statement.

"You?" Jennifer asked. "Why?"

"You don't want me to give you a statement?" Mac asked.

"There must be something else to it. I know you don't like me."

"I never said that. I just don't like you trying to snoop around and trap me into saying something so you can get a big story started and I would be hounded by the media until I gave you an exclusive."

"Okay, okay. You think I'm a vulture."

"Aren't you?"

"I do my job the best I can."

"Well, do you want to help me or not? You will get the first story from me if you help me."

Jennifer was quiet a moment. "Okay, what do you want me to do?" she asked.

"Come to my office and I will tell you what to write. I want to make sure you get it right."

"You think I can't take it down over the phone or do you just want to see me again? After all, I almost poisoned you."

"I just want to see it after you write it down."

"What time?"

"As soon as you can get here."

"You expect me to drop everything and rush over there?"

"Isn't that what reporters usually do?"

"Okay. I'll be there in about an hour."

"Good. I'll be waiting."

Mac ended the call and then looked at Christine. "Well, that puts some of it in motion," he said.

"I hope this works," Christine said. "How do you know it will?"

"I don't know, but I'm hoping because I don't know how we're going to find him. We don't have any leads as to where he is, and he's not at his apartment. There was nothing there that would point us in the direction to find him."

"I guess I better get back to the restaurant. Do you think we can have dinner tonight?"

"I hope so. I will do my best. Anyway, I will be there to take you home if I'm not chasing that guy down."

Christine folded her arms. "You are in no condition to chase anyone," she said.

"I mean, from here."

"You better."

"Don't worry, although I love you."

"I love you too, Mac Taylor."

Mac smiled as he watched Christine walk to the elevator. She looked over her shoulder at him and smiled. She got into the elevator and Mac looked down at his desk as his smile faded. He took the letter out of his desk drawer and looked at it. It had been a long time but seeing that letter made all those memories and feelings come rushing in like a tidal wave. He could not let it interfere with his work finding this serial killer however. He put the letter back in the drawer and got ready for Jennifer Walsh to arrive.


	12. Chapter 12

Jennifer Walsh arrived and went through security. Mac had cleared her so it was not difficult for her to get up to his office. He had Jo in his office for the interview so she could be a witness to everything he said. He hardly trusted reporters to always tell the truth. He had been burned by a few in the past and had to live down rumors that had been started about him but since there was no foundation for the accusation, it soon died as quick as it had started.

Jennifer walked to Mac's office and he waved her on in. "Hi," she said.

"Hi," Mac replied. "Have a seat."

Jennifer sat down and nodded to Jo. "So, what do you want to say that I had to come all the way over here for?" she asked.

"I want you to write a story about this case and I'm going to tell you what I want you to say," Mac said.

"And when did you become a writer?"

"I've been writing reports for a very long time. I guess I'm a pretty good writer."

"Okay." Jennifer got her notepad out and a pen. "So, let's get on with it."

Mac leaned back in his chair. "First, I want you to tell about the case so far," he said. "Tell how he has murdered three women and is a dangerous murderer. That should swell up his ego a little. Then we're going to cut him down."

Jennifer looked at Mac. "How?"

"Just write what I tell you."

After that interview, Jennifer started to leave but she went back to Mac's office after Jo left. "So, do you like coffee?" she asked.

"Sometimes," Mac replied.

"Why don't we have coffee tomorrow morning?"

Mac looked at her. "Well, I'm getting married in two days and I'm really busy."

Jennifer stared at him a moment. "You're getting married?"

"Yes."

"When did this happen?"

Mac scowled. "I don't think that's any of your concern."

"Well, congratulations."

As Jennifer was leaving, she saw the invitation on the bulletin board about Mac's wedding. She thought maybe she would announce it in the paper and maybe she would crash the wedding herself. She thought he deserved it after the way he had treated her. She would definitely take this story he had given her and print it. She had to wonder what reaction Mac hoped to get.

Danny came to Mac's office. "I went to see Don this morning," he said.

"How is he?" Mac asked.

"He's in some pain. He's going to have surgery tomorrow after some of the swelling goes down."

Mac sighed. "We have to catch this murderer and everybody has to be careful," he said. "He's already injured two of us and he would kill if he gets the chance."

"What's our next move?"

"We're going to wait for that newspaper article to come out and we will see if we get a reaction. He's bound to see it because he wants to see his fame in the paper."

"You think he will go after another victim?"

"He may be already picking one."

"How do we keep him from succeeding?"

"I don't know. We have not gotten any leads from anyone saying they saw him which is surprising to me."

"He must be hiding out."

"Yes, and I think he's somewhere around that pharmacy where he actually got his prescription."

"And the pharmacist said he was the one who went in there and got it," Danny said. "He recognized him from a picture."

Mac shifted in his seat. He thought his legs were getting stiff sitting there so long. "I'm going to get something to eat," he said. "It's late, and I didn't have any lunch. I'm hungry and I need to stretch my legs a little." He stood up and tried not to groan about it.

"That bad, huh?" Danny asked as he saw the look on Mac's face.

"Yeah, it's that bad," Mac said. He got his crutches and headed out of the office.

"I'll get in there with Adam and listen to the wire and see if anything comes in," Danny said.

"Good," Mac replied. "Let me know if you hear anything."

"You need someone to drive you?"

Mac sighed. "I suppose so. I can't move all that fast."

"I'm sure Lindsay won't mind taking you. She's always hungry."

Mac smiled. "So, what do you think it will be like to have two?"

Danny shook his head. "I don't know," he said. "It's hard to imagine. I find myself wondering what the baby will look like, whether it will be a boy or girl, will it look like me? What will we name it?"

Mac nodded. "That's some good problems to have."

"Yeah." Danny went into the lab and soon, Lindsay came out.

"You need someone to drive you?" Lindsay asked.

"Yes," Mac answered.

"Great! Let me get my purse."

Mac smiled and went to the elevator to wait for her. While he was waiting, his phone rang. "Hello," he answered.

"Mac, have you eaten anything?" Christine asked.

"I'm about to go now."

"Good. Are you coming here?"

Mac considered that. "Maybe. Someone's driving me so I might have to go where she wants to go."

"Who's driving you?"

"Lindsay."

"Is it that bad?"

"I just don't think I should drive right now because my legs are sore and I can't move fast enough."

"Okay. If you come here, I'll have you something ready when you arrive."

Mac looked to see Lindsay coming. "Hold on a minute, Christine," he said. He looked at Lindsay. "You want to go to Christine's restaurant?"

"Sure," Lindsay replied. "I hope she has shrimp because I am craving them so bad, I even dreamed that I was out on a boat catching them myself."

Mac almost laughed at that. "Christine, do you have shrimp?" he asked.

"I do," Christine replied. "Is that what you want?"

"It's what Lindsay wants. You know what I like."

"Oh, let me see…you want a hotdog?"

Mac chuckled as he went on into the elevator. "I think I'll have a hamburger today," he said.

"I'll have it ready by the time you get here and all the trimmings, and I'll have Lindsay's ready too."

"Great. We'll be there soon."

They went out to the Avalanche when they got down. Mac looked at the truck wondering if he could climb up in there. He opened the door and put his crutches in first. He put his right foot up first and got up into the truck easier than he had thought he could. Lindsay got in the driver's seat. "I am so hungry," she said. "I think it's worse this time than it was with Lucy."

Mac smiled. "Well, maybe you need to eat more this time," he said.

"I already feel like a cow."

Mac almost laughed. "You're not," he said. "Stop worrying about that."

"I guess it's just the hormones rushing around in me that make me feel that way."

Mac did not know much about that. He wished he had had a child with Claire but that was in the past and he had to look toward the future now. He swallowed hard as he thought of the fact that he was going to be getting married in two days. Even though he had been married before, he was still nervous about it. He knew he loved Christine and she loved him but they were about to change their entire lives.

"So, where are you guys going for your honeymoon?" Lindsay asked.

Mac looked at her. "Uhm, we're going fishing," he said.

Lindsay was not sure what to make of that answer. "Fishing?"

"I mean, we're going up to the mountains and stay in a cabin."

"Oh." Lindsay thought that was worse than their honeymoon…which they did not get to have. Of course, they had been on trips since then but it was not the same thing. She had been glad that she married Danny though, especially when she got in that delivery room, and there was nothing like having him there all the time and having someone to know everything.

Mac heard that 'oh'. "You don't think that is a good honeymoon?" he asked.

"It doesn't matter to me. It's up to you and Christine."

"We were planning to go up there before we decided to get married Friday and then we thought we would just combine the two and…"

"Does she like fishing?"

Mac considered that. "I don't know," he said. "I'm sure we will have more to do than just fish."

"I'm sure you will."

They arrived at Christine's restaurant and went inside. Christine smiled as she saw Mac come in the door. She wondered if her heart would stop jumping every time she saw him after they were married. It was like she got an electric shot every time she saw him even when she was expecting him to come. She went over to him and kissed him. "I'm glad to see you," she said.

"Well, it was just a while ago that you were at the office," Mac replied.

"It doesn't matter. I love it every time I see you."

"I'm always glad to see you too."

"I have your meals ready. Are you going to eat here?"

"I think so."

Mac and Lindsay sat down at a table and Christine brought their meals to them. "Anything else?" she asked.

"This is perfect," Lindsay said as she was taking a bite of the shrimp.

Christine smiled and looked at Mac, hoping that she would know how Lindsay felt some day. Mac noticed that look but he took a bite of his hamburger and tried not to let her know that he noticed. Then he remembered what he had been thinking of earlier. Did he want to make that same mistake again? He looked at Christine and smiled his knowing smile. It made him nervous to think of having a baby but he would not refuse again. Then he thought of how old he was getting and that Christine was only six years younger. How soon would they have a baby? He thought he wanted to get used to being married first. He supposed they could discuss that after they were married.

Lindsay ate her plate of shrimp, savoring every bite. Mac wondered how things tasted to her. He had always heard that things tasted better to women when they were pregnant. "Does everything taste better while you're pregnant?" he asked.

"Yes!" Lindsay said. "I think it's because women need to eat more when they're pregnant and everything tastes so good you can't help but eat more."

"Well, nature always knows best."

"Isn't it wonderful?"

Mac ate a fry and thought about the case they were working on. He supposed the next morning would tell the tale. When that paper came out, they would see how in touch that criminal was. Mac was sure the guy would be looking for his name to be mentioned. He did not seem to care that they knew who he was. He remembered when they had been after suspect X…they had not known what her name was. It had taken them a long time to figure out who the compass killer was either…and who the cabbie killer was. With all the people in the city, he did not know how Wayne Bryant could stay hidden.

That evening, they had not found any more clues as to the whereabouts of Wayne Bryant. Mac was beginning to wonder if the man had changed his appearance somehow. If he had, he might even get out of the city. Mac did not think he wanted to get out of the city…he wanted to stick around and gloat about his crimes and see how many he could commit without getting caught. _Catch me if you can. _That was what he had said. Mac thought that was how all of them were…arrogant.

Christine came to the office when she got off from the restaurant. "Why don't you come home with me again?" she asked.

Mac sighed. "I might as well," he said. "I don't think we're going to find anything else tonight."

"Come on."

Mac let Adam and the others know he was leaving. "Let me know if you find anything," he said. "No matter what time it is."

Mac and Christine went to her apartment and went inside. "I hate walking on crutches," Mac said. "I hope I won't need them tomorrow."

"Maybe you won't," Christine replied. "Are you bad sore?"

"Pretty sore. It's bruises…if you can imagine having bruises all over your legs, and some of them are pretty bad."

"You want something to drink?"

"Water."

"I'll be right back."

Mac sat down on the sofa and sighed. He thought he could work some of that soreness out if he tried. He raised his legs up and down and stretched them but that did not seem to help much. They still felt stiff. Christine came back with a bottle of water. She smiled at Mac lying on the sofa. "I liked you being here," she said.

"You have a comfortable couch," Mac said.

Christine set the bottle of water down and got on the couch with him and lay down on top with her head on his chest. "Just think, it won't be long till we are doing this all the time," she said.

"I can't wait," Mac said.

"Do you think you will catch that guy?"

"I hope."

"I have my dress now." Christine raised up and looked at him. "You want to see it?"

Mac pushed her hair out of her face. "Isn't that bad luck?" he asked.

"I don't know…is it?" Christine leaned down and kissed him. "Does this feeling ever fade?"

"What feeling?"

"That feeling I get every time I see you?"

Mac kissed her again. "What feeling is that?" he asked.

"That thing my heart does?"

"I don't think so."

"I hope not. I like it."

Mac smiled at her. "We don't ever have to lose our infatuation with each other," he said. "We can keep the fire kindled and not let it die."

"I don't think this fire is going to die. And I think we're going to be consumed Friday night."

Mac cleared his throat. "I don't think you should say that when you're laying on top of me like this," he said.

Christine leaned down closer to him. "Why?" she whispered.

"I think you know why," he said.

"I love to tease you."

"Everybody seems to."

"Because you're so shy."

"I am not."

"OH yes you are, and I'm going to take advantage of you Friday night."

"Oh really? I might take advantage of you."

"I'm not going to resist."

Mac pulled her down and kissed her again. Christine slid her arms around and under him and enjoyed the love they had for each other in their kiss. Then Mac's phone rang. He looked at her. "Sorry," he said. He got the phone and answered it, "Taylor."

"Are you having a hard time finding me, Detective?" Bryant asked.

"Why do you ask? Are you having a hard time keeping up with us?"

"I don't think you have a clue."

"Well, I guess you will be the first to know if I do, won't you?"

"You better watch those women out there. I'm still out here and I have seen a lot of prospective victims…or that's what you call them."

"That's what they are."

"They're so vain. They put those nails on there knowing that they can't keep them from being broken, and then they go to the gym and fuss at me if one gets broken. They don't even know anything about real problems. They live on a velvet pillow and don't know anything about real suffering."

Mac frowned. "But you do?"

"Of course! You should know I do!"

"I don't think you know anything. You're nothing but a psychopathic murderer."

Bryant was silent a moment. "Well, I'm smarter than you…you haven't been able to find me yet."

"But I will."

"Catch me if you can."

The call ended and Mac put his phone away. He looked at Christine who was still lying on him. "That was him," she said. "What did he say?"

"I was right about him," Mac said. "It is about them coming to the gym with those nails on but I know he can't stand to be called a psychopath. He's feeling sorry for himself and he wants other people to thinks he's smart and be in awe about how he can get away with it."

"Your plan is working?"

"I don't know but we'll see after tomorrow's paper."

Christine ran her finger around his chin. "So handsome," she said.

"And you are beautiful."

She kissed him again and then got up. "I guess I will see you in the morning," she said.

Mac stared at her a moment and then nodded. "Yeah. Good night."

"Good night."

Christine smiled as she went to her room. She could hardly believe they would get married the day after tomorrow. She was nervous but excited at the same time. It would be wonderful.


	13. Chapter 13

The next morning, Mac woke up smelling coffee. He opened his eyes and thought he was just too tired to get up and when he moved his legs, he really did not want to get up. He groaned as he sat up anyway. His whole body felt sore. He rubbed his face and realized the morning paper was lying on the coffee table in front of him. He picked it up and saw his story on the front page. _**PROFILE OF A SERIAL KILLER**_**. **Mac had to smile at that because it would definitely get his attention. He read what Jennifer Walsh had written and he had to admit she was a good writer. It would definitely get Wayne Bryant's attention.

Just then, Mac's phone rang. "Taylor," he answered.

"Have you seen the morning paper yet?" Jo asked.

"I have. I'm looking at it now."

"It looks good. It ought to get his attention."

"I know. He called me last night."

"What did he say?"

"Well, he was just gloating about the whole thing and said 'catch me if you can'."

"Oh, that is just so arrogant," Jo said.

"I think he will get angry and anger causes carelessness."

"I hope you're right, Mac."

"I think I am."

After that call, Mac stood up slowly. He could not believe his legs were so stiff. He had to get them moving…for one thing, he hoped they could find that killer today and another, he was getting married tomorrow! He thought walking on those crutches only made them get stiffer. He would work through that pain and he thought it would get better. He walked down the hall to the bathroom.

Christine came into the living room and found that Mac was gone off the sofa. She could hear the water running in the bathroom. She smiled at the thought that tomorrow they would be married and he would be there every morning. Mac came from the bathroom. "Morning," he said.

"Morning," Christine replied. "Are you ready for breakfast?"

"Sure. I think you're spoiling me."

"I intend to spoil you a lot."

Christine noticed how Mac was walking as they went into the kitchen. "How are your legs?" she asked.

"Stiff," Mac said. "But I think I can get that soreness out."

"Did you see the paper?"

"Yes. My plan is in motion now."

"Did you see what else was in the paper?"

"What?"

"I'll get it."

Mac sat down at the table while Christine went to get the paper. He could not help but wonder what was in there that she thought was so important. She came back and gave him the paper. She sat down in a chair and waited to see Mac's reaction.

Mac looked at the article she was referring to. He frowned and looked at Christine. "She announced our wedding in the paper? I didn't tell her to do that."

"I know you didn't. I think she did it for spite." Christine leaned on her elbow. "Just what was your relationship with her?"

Mac crumpled the paper as he jerked it down. "What?" he asked in surprise.

"It's a simple question. What was your relationship?"

"I didn't have a relationship with her. She's a reporter who came after me to get a story."

"Oh, and nothing else?"

"I don't care if she wanted anything else. I didn't want anything from her."

"She wasn't your type, huh?"

"That was not what she wanted. She wanted a story. What have you been doing, talking to Jo?"

"What does Jo know? Have you dated her?"

"No! What is this? The third degree?"

"I'm just curious why this reporter would go to all that trouble."

"I met you shortly after I met her. It doesn't matter what she thought."

"I don't know all that much about your dating history. How many women have you dated since Claire died?"

Mac stared at her a moment. "I don't know that much about yours either," he said.

"I dated a few guys, none of which were very serious. It's hard to get serious with someone when you're in love with someone else."

"I wish that we had met a long time ago but I wonder if things would have turned out different."

"You never know." Christine smiled. "That was quite slick how you changed the subject there."

Mac laid the paper down on the table. "You know about Peyton," he said.

"Yes, but I don't know about any others. Who should I expect at the wedding? If this woman would do this and you never even dated her…what will the others do?"

"Are we really having this discussion?"

"I think so." Christine smiled. "Does it make you nervous?"

"I don't know. Why are you asking me?"

"I just wanted to know."

"I didn't date many. I mean, most of them were only one date."

"Most? How many?"

"Maybe three. I went on more than one date with Rose but I wasn't really ready at the time. I tried but in my heart I was still married and I felt guilty. That was what went wrong with Peyton too."

"And it's different now?"

"Yes. I feel like I can move on and that I'm doing the right thing."

"I'm glad because I have never been so sure of anything."

"You're different and don't judge me because I had a long happy marriage. I can't go back and change what happened and I can't stop my feelings."

"I know that. I love you just the way you are. Have you decided what to do yet about the letter?"

Mac shook his head. "No, but I don't know of anything I can do. It's not like there's anything to bury."

"Well, let me get our breakfast."

Mac looked at the paper while he waited. He did not think Jennifer would do anything to disrupt his wedding…if it even took place. They had not caught that murderer yet and he would not be able to go anywhere until that was done.

After breakfast, Mac went home and took a shower. He thought of what Christine had asked him. He had to admit there were a few women out there, and some of them had not been too happy with him. He did not care whether they were or not. He did not do anything he did not want to do.

When he was ready, he went to the hospital to see Don who would be having surgery that day. "I hate this," Don said. He was very groggy from his medications.

"Just get well and don't worry about the case," Mac said.

"How is it going?"

"Well, we're waiting."

"And I'm laying here not doing anything."

"You let us handle it and you worry about getting well."

"I'm trying."

"I'll be back to see you this evening if I'm not tied up."

"Okay. I want to know what is going on."

"I'll try to keep you informed."

Mac went to the office after that visit and drove there in his Avalanche today. His legs were feeling better since that hot shower, but they were still sore and he would not be running for a while. He could end up making them worse.

"Morning, Mac," Jo said as they met in the hall.

"Morning," Mac replied.

"Are you better this morning?"

"Yes. Definitely but not out of the woods yet."

"So, what do we do today?"

"Wait. I think he is going to contact me soon."

"I hope so. You know how nervous people get when there is a serial killer out there."

"Yes. I'm nervous myself."

Mac went on to his office and sat down. He would just have to do paperwork until they got some sort of word. He did not have to wait long because Danny came to his office around 10 am. "Mac, we have a call about a murder," he said. "Lovato thinks it might be tied to this case."

"Then I'm going," Mac replied. "I don't have to chase anybody but I'm going to be there."

Danny was silent a moment. "Did you get the text?" he asked.

"No, why?"

"It's in your building."

Mac frowned. "My building?"

"Yes. Your apartment building."

"Let's go."

Jo came along with them to the Avalanche and they went to the crime scene. Mac stared at the victim as he walked into the apartment which was just right around the corner from his apartment. Jo looked at him. "You didn't hear anything?" she asked.

"I wasn't here," Mac said. "And he knew it." Mac could not believe that guy had manipulated him into thinking he was going after Christine so he would stay with her. It was too complicated and it would mean that the guy knew him too well.

"You were at Christine's?"

"Yes. I've been staying there on her sofa because I thought he would come after her."

Jo looked at the victim. "You think he knew you would?" she asked.

Mac shook his head. "He couldn't," he said.

"Just coincidence?"

Mac wondered if that guy did anything by coincidence. "We don't know that she is one of his victims," he said.

"It looks like it," Danny said. "The MO is the same and so is the signature."

Mac looked at the victim's hands as Danny shined his light on them. "We have to figure out how she knew the suspect," Jo said.

"And did she go to that gym?" Mac added. "Why didn't she know about this case?"

"Some people just don't pay attention, I guess."

They looked around the apartment and found that the woman's makeup kits had been rummaged through like the last one. Mac thought he would have to look at the crime scene photos from those first two victims and see if their makeup kits had been rummaged. Now that it was something significant they had to put them together. He supposed it was not considered part of the crime in the other two. He made a note of that and then looked around more. He did not see anything else that had been disturbed in the apartment, and Jo did not find anything on the victim except that she had been shot and that her nails had been removed.

As they were finishing the scene, Mac's phone rang. "Taylor," he answered.

"Hi, Detective Taylor," Bryant said.

Mac frowned. "What do you want?"

"You weren't home, Detective. I thought I would leave you a little surprise."

"I'm going to find you."

"Oh, and I saw your little article this morning. You think I take my suffering out on other people? I'll show you suffering, humiliation."

"Who humiliated you?"

"You did with that article! And they did!"

"Who?"

The call ended and Mac looked at Jo. "That was him," he said.

"What did he say this time?" Jo asked.

"He knew I wasn't home last night."

"How?"

"I don't know but we need to find out. He has to be watching either me or Christine."

"Have you asked Christine if she has seen him around the restaurant?"

"She hasn't seen him. She's seen the pictures and knows about this. She would tell me if he had been there."

"How could he be watching you?"

Mac considered that. "I don't know unless he's sitting around at our apartment buildings or he's got some sort of camera or he's got access to cameras on the street."

"How could he?"

"I don't see how he could. He's just figuring it out somehow."

They went back to the lab and got to work on the evidence while they waited for the autopsy to be done. That autopsy was pushed up because of the significance of it. Mac wrote everything in his report about the case so far. He knew the case was tied with the others. He wondered what Bryant meant when he said he would show him suffering. He just hoped that guy would come after him. He would teach him a thing or two even with his bruised legs.

When the autopsy was done, Mac and Jo went down to the morgue to see what Sid had found although they already knew what to expect. "Good day," Sid said. "I suppose you're looking for information."

"Yes," Mac said.

"I have the bullet and your victim has what looks like nail glue on her fingers where her artificial nails were removed, but there is nothing else. She was shot right through the heart."

Mac took the bullet. "Thanks, Sid."

"Congratulations on your wedding, Mac."

"Thanks."

"Mac, don't miss your wedding. Your job will still be here when you get back."

Jo nodded as she agreed with Sid. "I have to do what I have to do," Mac said.

"Your wedding day is a special day."

"I know. Thanks, Sid."

Mac and Jo went back to the elevator and headed back up to the lab. "He's right, you know," Jo said.

"Christine understands," Mac replied.

"Are you going to go through your whole life saying that? There is going to come a day when she won't understand."

Mac looked at her. "She knows what kind of job I have."

"Don't take it for granted that she 'understands', Mac. You will lose her. I don't care how secure you think you are. If you put this job before her, you will lose her."

The elevator doors opened and Jo walked out. Mac stood there a moment with his mouth open but then he went on to the lab. He gave the bullet to Lindsay and the glue to Danny. "Analyze those, will you?" Mac asked and went on to his office.

Mac sat down at his desk and thought about what Jo said. He did take it for granted that Christine understood. He never even thought about how upset she would be if he could not be at that wedding after she worked so hard, and he never thought about how upset she was when he missed a date. He did take her for granted just like he did Claire. He knew he did. He had put his job before Claire too and he had neglected her at times. Now he was starting the same thing again with Christine. He could not do that. He had to change that and he would be at that wedding if he had to leave in the middle of something.


	14. Chapter 14

Mac sat at his desk until that evening and then Jamie Lovato came to his office. "Mac, we have a lead on Wayne Bryant," she said.

"Where?" Mac asked.

"A neighbor reported seeing him at an apartment building over in Queens."

"Get a team together and meet me downstairs."

"I'm on it."

Mac went to Jo's office. "We have a lead," he said. "Let's get ready."

Jo followed Mac to the lab and let Danny know what was going on. They all went downstairs to get with the other team and form a plan. Mac knew he had to stay in the truck but he would monitor things with the radio. He could not chase anyone as he knew.

Mac laid out the plan that the others would follow to try and get to Wayne Bryant before he knew they were coming. They would go in quiet with no sirens and try not to make a spectacle before they got into the building. They headed that way and soon arrived outside the apartment building that had been specified. Mac hated to sit there in the truck and wait, but he could not get in the way.

Danny, Jo, Jamie and the rest of the team headed into the apartment building which left Mac in the truck. He could hear them over the radio but they could not hear him. He could not tell them what to do inside because he was not in there.

They all got into the elevator, and went up to the tenth floor which was where the call came from. It was not easy to sneak down a hallway where a lot of people lived. There were a few people in the hall and Danny motioned for them to get inside their apartments. They moved on down that hall and around the corner to the right hallway and got ready to forcefully enter the apartment.

Two officers took the battering ram and rammed the door open. "N.Y.P.D.!" Danny yelled as they went into the apartment, but there was no one in sight. They went on inside and began searching.

Mac was sitting in the truck waiting anxiously to see if they would find Bryant in there. Suddenly, a gun barrel came through the open window of the truck and then Wayne Bryant was there. Mac glared at him. "You better give up," he said.

"Get out of that truck," Bryant said.

"I will not."

"Get out or I will blow you away." Bryant pulled the hammer back on the gun.

Mac was angry clear to the bone but he pulled the handle of the truck, but instead of just trying to climb out, he shoved the door open, causing Bryant to fall down. Mac started to get out of the truck, but then Bryant shoved the truck on his leg. Mac yelled out with pain as Bryant leaned on the door. "Get out of that truck slowly," he said.

Mac did not think he could get out any other way now. He grabbed his leg when the door was off it. He was plain mad now but he got down from the truck. "What do you think you're doing?" he asked.

"I'm going to keep my promise," Bryant replied. "I'll show you what suffering is and don't try anything or I will shoot you."

Mac had no choice but to walk on with the man. He did not want to be shot. If he got shot, he sure would not be able to get to his wedding. Bryant walked him around to another alley and to a car around there. Mac looked around but there was no one around. He supposed Bryant knew how to do things without anyone seeing. He had gotten away with four murders.

"Get in that car," Bryant demanded.

"No," Mac said.

"Get in there!"

"NO! Go ahead and kill me!" Mac could not believe he said that. This was a murderer and he would think nothing of killing him.

Instead of killing him, Bryant hit him on the back of the head. Mac fell into the side of the car and then Bryant opened the trunk and put him in there. He tried to keep him from closing the trunk, but he could not. He knew he was in trouble now. What did Bryant think he was going to do to him? _I'll show you what suffering is. _What did that mean?

Jo went back out to the Avalanche to get the forensics kit and she was surprised to see that Mac was not there. "Mac!" she called. She took her weapon out and looked around there as she saw the door of the truck open. She got her phone and called Danny. "Mac is not in the truck," she said. "Did he come in?"

"If he's in here, he's not in this apartment," Danny replied. "Maybe he hasn't got up here yet."

"Wherever he is, he left the door of the truck open."

"Maybe he hasn't got up here yet."

"Maybe."

Jo went ahead and got the forensics kit and went back inside. She walked into the apartment and expected to see Mac there, but of course, he was not. "Where did he go?" she asked.

"You don't think he saw Bryant come out and went after him, do you?" Danny asked.

"Surely he wouldn't."

"Are you kidding? He would."

Jo was not sure what to do. They had no way of knowing which way Mac would have gone if he went after the guy, and she could not see Mac running after that guy with his legs bruised the way they were. "He could at least call," she said. "If he's after him and I call him, it could put him in danger."

Danny knew that was true but he did not think Mac would be out after that guy. "I'm going to call him anyway," he said. He got his phone and dialed Mac's number. It rung several times and then went to voice mail. "He didn't answer."

"I don't like this one bit."

They knew what a dangerous person they were chasing and he could have gotten the jump on Mac. "What do we do?" Danny asked. "I don't think Mac would just disappear like that."

"Have some officers go out and do a search around. If he's out after Bryant, he might be coming back."

"I'll go myself. You can handle this here."

"Right."

Danny took two officers with him and went outside. He did not know which way to go but he started in the direction away from the front of the truck. There was no sign of anything until he got to the end of the alley and found Mac's cell phone. He frowned as he picked it up. "No wonder he didn't answer it," he said. He looked down the alley and found that Mac's badge was also down there. He went down there to it and gathered it up. Next, he found Mac's wallet. He knew something was wrong now. He called Jo and let her know.

"We better get an APB out, "Jo said. She remembered that Wayne Bryant had called Mac, and she had not known everything he said in that conversation.

Mac was still in the trunk of that car and he could not move very much. His legs felt cramped in there and it seemed to make them ache even more. He would not let that guy do anything to him. He would figure out how to get away from him. It was not long until the car stopped. Mac heard Bryant get out of the car and slam the door and then he heard him walking around toward the back of the car.

Mac thought he would try to jump the guy when he got out of that trunk. Bryant unlocked the car and then he shined a bright light in Mac's eyes. He could not help but close his eyes as the light dazzled them. "Get out of there," Bryant said.

Mac wished he could get up fast, but he could not. He sat up and Bryant held the gun on him aimed at his head. "You know I'm a good shot," Bryant said.

Mac glared at him. "Why don't you put that gun down and we'll fight it out?" he asked.

"Why would I want to do that? I know I can't beat you like that."

Mac got out of the trunk and stood there to see what Bryant would do next. He closed the trunk and then motioned with the gun for Mac to walk toward the house they were at. Mac wondered whose house it was. They had not found any property that was in Wayne Bryant's name. As they got inside, Mac realized that this was where Bryant had been staying. It was fully furnished.

"Get in there," Bryant said and gestured toward a door. Mac went to the door and opened it.

There was nothing in that room but a chair. "Sit down," Bryant demanded.

"You know what they will do to you when they find you after this?" Mac asked.

"I don't want to hear your threats or your reasoning. Just sit down."

Mac sat down and just as Bryant was about to cuff him to the chair, he tilted the chair over backward and knocked Bryant down. Mac rolled over and tried to get up fast, but Bryant grabbed his ankle and jerked his leg from under him and Mac fell to the floor again, but then he kicked Bryant in the face.

This time, Mac was able to get up to his feet but Bryant was fast and he was on his feet too, and he had the gun again. "You better stop now," he said.

Mac stared at the barrel of the gun and then glared at Bryant. "What do you think you're going to do?" he asked.

"Set that chair up and sit down in it, and don't try anything again or I will just shoot you and then I'll leave you here to die alone."

Mac frowned, but he knew the man meant it. He set the chair up with the thought of hitting Bryant with it but if he got shot here, he might never make it out alive. He sat down in the chair and then Bryant suddenly jabbed him in the neck with a needle. Mac almost jumped out of the chair but it was too late. Whatever he gave him worked fast because he found himself unable to get up. He felt Bryant cuffing his hands behind him and then he was asleep.

Jo and the others had finished at the apartment and they had not seen anything that would lead to Mac. "Why would he kidnap Mac?" Jo asked.

"Mac was trying to make the guy angry," Danny said. "It looks like he succeeded. He knew Mac couldn't go in there with us."

"He seems to be one step ahead of us all the time. How did he even know we were coming there?"

"I want to know the answer to that myself. We left here as soon as we got that message. There's no way he could have heard anything on the police scanner or anything like that."

"He wouldn't have anyway because we had radio silence."

Danny looked into the lab. "There couldn't be anyone here helping him," he said quietly.

"That's absurd," Jo replied. "I think he's just good at guessing or at calculating what will happen next. There are people who do that, you know."

"Or he let us know where that apartment was on purpose."

Jo looked at Danny. "What would he want with Mac?"

"I don't know but it can't be anything good."

When Mac woke up, he was sitting at a table. He felt like his eyes would not focus but he finally realized his hands were cuffed to a table. His eyes widened when he saw that there were artificial nails on his hands. "Hey!" he yelled and looked around him. What did that guy think he was doing? He remembered that the man had killed all those women because of those fake nails.

Wayne Bryant walked in then. "Well, you're finally awake," he said. "How do you like the beautiful job I've done?"

"Are you out of your mind!" Mac could not believe he asked that. Of course the man was out of his mind. "What do you think you're doing?"

Bryant came and sat down at the table across from Mac and leaned on the table. "I'll tell you what I'm doing," he said. "I'm going to make you a public example."

"Of what?"

"Of what happens when you try to humiliate me."

"You have humiliated yourself!"

"We'll see."

Mac watched as Bryant went into the other room and then came back with a needle and a bottle. "What are you doing?" Mac asked.

"I won't give you enough to kill you," Bryant said. "I just want you to know what it's like to have a low blood sugar and feel like you're dying."

Mac was horrified. He knew what insulin could do to a person who was not a diabetic. "NO!" he yelled but he could not get away. He was taped to the chair he was sitting in and his hands were cuffed to the table. "You can't do this!"

"Yes I can," Bryant said. "As a matter of fact, I can do anything I want to you."

Mac was starting to get scared as he watched him draw the insulin out. "NO!" He pulled at the cuffs that were holding him to the table but it was no use…they were metal.

Bryant came toward him with the needle. Mac tried to back up but he could not do that either. "I can give this to you just about anywhere," Bryant said.

"Please," Mac said.

"Are you begging?"

Mac frowned and glared at him. "It's not my fault that you're a diabetic."

"I never said it was."

Mac tried to move away from him but he gave him the shot anyway. "You won't feel the effects of that for about thirty minutes," Bryant said. He turned to leave the room.

"Hey, don't leave me in here!" Mac said.

"I'll be back."

Mac sat there wondering what would happen to him. He was scared now. He knew he could go into a coma and die. Worst of all, he could not even move. He wondered what that maniac would do next but after a few minutes, he started to feel lightheaded and shaky. "Hey!" he yelled. He started to feel nervous and sweaty.

Bryant came back into the room and sat down across from Mac. "How do you feel?" he asked.

Mac felt like he was going to cry. "I'm stuck," he said as he was starting to feel confused.

"Stuck where?"

"Help me."

"Where do you think you are?"

"I don't know." Mac shook his head as his vision was blurred now. He stared at the table even though he could hardly see anything now.

"You don't feel too good, do you?" Bryant asked.

Mac did not answer because he was not really comprehending what the other was saying now. "I guess I better help you then," Bryant said. He put a glucose tablet into Mac's mouth. "Chew that up."

Mac did not know what he was talking about at the moment but he felt the tablet in his mouth and he started chewing it. He soon started to feel a little better and then Bryant stuck a straw in his mouth. "Drink that, he said.

Mac started to drink what tasted like a milkshake. He had never felt so bad in his life. His hands were shaking and so were his other muscles. He drunk more of the milkshake hoping that it would make his feel better. After he drunk a little more, he felt so sleepy that he just lay over on the table and could not stay awake any longer. He woke up later lying on a bed but he felt horrible. He looked at his hands and knew that he had not been dreaming. He still had the artificial nails on. His fingernails felt sore with those things on there. He had never known much about those things. Claire had never worn them and Christine did not wear them either. He supposed when someone was a chef, they could not wear things like that. More importantly, he still felt very weak and wondered what that insulin was doing to him. He knew that insulin was very dangerous to a non-diabetic.

Mac heard something in the other room and soon, Bryant came in with a woman. Mac tried to sit up but he could not sit up fast. His head felt like it was spinning when he did sit up and he was shaking. Bryant brought the woman in there and tied her in a chair. "What are you doing?" Mac asked.

"I'm going to let you watch while I work," Bryant said. "Then you will know what to tell the paper."

Mac could see the terror in the woman's eyes. "Let her go!" he said but he knew he was not going to be doing anything to help her.

"Why would I want to do that?"

"She has done nothing to you!"

Bryant turned the woman around so Mac could see her hands. "See those nails?" he asked. "She's just like all the others…vain."

"That's your opinion!" Mac declared. Then he felt so dizzy he thought he would fall over.

"Well, you're in no condition to be a hero today so you can't stop me."

Mac watched with horror as the man got some sort of tool and began removing the woman's artificial nails. He would not just sit there and let him kill that woman. She was crying. Mac supposed that was hurting her as the nails were being removed. "Let her go!" he demanded.

"NO!" Bryant replied. He laughed at Mac. "You can't do anything to stop me. I know how you're feeling right now."

When he had the nails removed, Bryant turned the woman around to face Mac and then he moved over to the bed. "Now, watch closely," he said.

Mac stared at the woman as he heard the hammer on the gun pulled back and she was crying and panicking. Mac suddenly threw himself at Bryant and the gun went off. The bullet went into the ceiling as Mac caused Bryant to fall to the floor. He could hear the woman screaming but he felt like the world was turning upside down. He tried to keep Bryant from getting up but he could not. Instead, Bryant hit him with the gun.

"You think he is going to demand ransom?" Jamie asked as she was talking to Jo and Danny.

"I wouldn't think so," Jo said.

They all knew that Mac's chances of survival were not good. He was in the hands of a serial killer. Danny paced back and forth. "Well, he obviously hasn't killed him and thrown him out," he said. "He's been missing for hours."

"I don't know what all he said to Mac the last time he called. I just wish we knew where he is."

"Adam is digging to see if there are any properties that we don't know about that are owned by his family or anything. Maybe he has some place out there that we don't know about."

"He must because surely someone would see Mac if he tried to take him into an apartment building."

"I guess all we can do is hope."

"I have to go and tell Christine."

"I'll leave that to you."

Jo nodded. She went into her office and got her purse. She was not about to just call Christine and tell her. She would have to tell her this in person. She went down to the Avalanche and headed to Christine's apartment. She knew she should have told her earlier but she was hoping that they would hear something from Mac. She got to the apartment building and went up to Christine's apartment.

Christine heard someone ring the doorbell and she thought it might be Mac. She had not heard from him tonight but since they were getting married tomorrow, she thought maybe he was trying to get the case over with so they could go on their honeymoon. She got her robe on and headed to the door. "Just a minute," she said as she was unlocking the door. She opened the door expecting to see Mac and was surprised to see Jo there. "Jo. What are you…"

Jo could see the look of fear that came over Christine's face. "Can I come in?" she asked.

"Sure."

Jo went in and Christine closed the door. "What's happened?" Christine asked. "This is about Mac, isn't it?"

"Yes," Jo said. "I didn't want to tell you on the phone."

Christine sat down. She did not know what Jo was about to tell her but she could only think of the worst. "Mac is missing," Jo said. "We had a lead on the suspect and when we went into the building after him, Mac was sitting in the truck and when I came back out, he was gone and we couldn't get in touch with him. Danny found his phone and badge and wallet."

"Well, where is he?"

"We think…we think the serial killer has him."

Christine tried not to cry but she felt like she was shaking inside. "You haven't heard from him?" she asked.

"Not yet," Jo said. She wished she knew something to comfort Christine but she was not comforted herself. "We're doing everything we can to find him."

Christine nodded as she folded her arms. "Thanks for telling me."

Jo looked at her a moment. "You want me to stay with you?" she asked.

"No, I'll be fine."

"I'm sorry."

Jo left and Christine went back to her room. She got into bed and just cried. She loved Mac so much she just wanted him to be there with her. Now he was lost and they did not know how to find him. She cried herself back to sleep.

Jo went back to the lab. She did not want to find Mac murdered somewhere. She did not think she could stand over his body and just think of him as a "victim". It was not hard when they did not know the person but they all knew Mac. She went into the lab where Danny was. "I guess we have to prepare for the worst," Jo said.

Danny shook his head. "Jo, I don't want to think of Mac being dead," he said.

"Well, it may be something we have to face. What are we going to do if we are called to a crime scene and it's Mac?"

"I can't do it. You'll have to take Sheldon with you. He's a doctor."

"Danny, we're investigators. We have to do our jobs."

"I can't." Danny backed away and left the lab.

Jo folded her arms. She knew it would be the hardest thing she ever did but they did not know whether the man would kill Mac or not…but what other reason would he have to kidnap him?


	15. Chapter 15

The next morning, Jamie was visiting Don. He was very groggy since he had his surgery the day before. She did not want to tell him about Mac because he would just lie there and worry. "We still haven't caught the guy," she said.

"I guess Mac will get married this afternoon and I wish I could be there," Don said. "I would probably fall asleep if I was."

"I'll try to get you a live feed."

"I hope you can."

Just then, Jamie's phone rang. "Lovato," she answered.

"Lovato, we have a report of a naked man on the beach. Looks like he's passed out drunk but there's a dead woman there too."

"I'm on it." Jamie put her phone away and looked at Don. "Got to go."

"Be careful," Don said.

"I always am." She leaned down and kissed Don. "You get well."

Jamie went out and headed to the beach where the body was. There were people standing around of course. She showed them her badge. "Back away!" she said. "Give some room!"

Jamie walked on down to the beach and stopped in her tracks as she saw the man that was lying on the beach. She turned her back and then grabbed her phone.

"Jo Danville," Jo answered.

"Jo, get down here now," Jamie said.

"I'm on my way now. We got the report about the dead body."

"And the naked guy?"

"Yes."

"Jo, it's Mac," Jamie whispered.

"Oh my word. I'm on my way!"

Jamie looked around her. "Back up!" she demanded. "Get away!" She noticed the neon pink nails that were on Mac's hands too. She got a blanket from the back of her car and put it over him. She would not let him lie there like that but at least he was lying on his stomach. She knew reporters would be swarming in soon, even probably before Jo and the others arrived. She touched Mac's neck and found that he was definitely alive. "Mac," she whispered. "Mac."

Mac did not move. Jamie stayed there beside him until Jo and the others arrived and an ambulance as well. "He is not drunk," Jo said as the paramedics arrived. She had to take pictures of the scene including the victim. If she did not know Mac, it would look like he could have killed the woman after getting drunk but she knew better. The gun was even there right beside Mac's hand as though he had shot the woman and then fell with the gun.

Danny got down to the beach next. "What did he do to him?" he asked.

"Whatever it is, he is not responding to anything," Jo said.

The paramedics got Mac onto a stretcher and got him into an ambulance. "I'll go with him," Danny said. "I'll get pictures down there and maybe I can talk to Mac."

"Good," Jo replied. "Sheldon will be here soon. He can help me with this body."

Danny got into the ambulance with Mac. The paramedic was starting an IV in Mac's arm. "You know what's wrong with him?" Danny asked. "Has he been drugged?"

"I'm not sure," the paramedic replied. He got the IV started and then listened to Mac's heart. "Is he a diabetic?"

Danny scowled at that. "No." Then he frowned. "But the guy who kidnapped him is. Why?"

"He has the symptoms of a low blood sugar."

"Can you treat that?"

"Yes but we have to have blood tests done first."

"Can he die from this?"

"Yes he can but we're going to try to prevent that."

Danny stared at Mac as the paramedic was contacting someone on the radio. Mac looked sweaty and his face looked pale too. He leaned over Mac and patted his face. "Mac," he said. "Come on, wake up." He wanted Mac to wake up and tell him what happened. Maybe he could even help them find where Wayne Bryant was. "Come on, Mac."

They soon arrived at the hospital and Mac was rushed into the ER. Danny followed them and had to take pictures before they did anything else. "Get those nails off him," Danny said. "I need them as evidence too."

"You need to leave now," the nurse said. "We will get to those after we save his life."

Danny left the room and paced around in the waiting room. He decided he would go and see Don while he waited to see what would happen to Mac. He walked down to Don's room and knocked. He did not hear anything and figured Don might be asleep. He opened the door slowly and found that Don was asleep. He did not want to tell him about Mac right now. He would only lay there and worry, but he figured he would be wondering what he was doing with the forensics kit and camera there.

Danny touched Don's shoulder. "Hey," he said.

Don jumped at little and opened his eyes. "What are you trying to do? Scare me to death?" he asked.

"Nah, just trying to keep you from getting so lazy."

"Oh, I wish it was only laziness."

"So, how you feeling?"

"I have never had so much pain in my life."

"I can sympathize with you."

"It feels like my bones have been shoved together and hammered."

"Nothing like a broken bone."

Don frowned. "I just hope this is not going to interfere with my job," he said.

Danny did not know what to say to that. "They'll put you through therapy you know," he said. "They can do a lot with that. I mean, I'm still doing this job."

"But you don't run with your wrist."

"Hey, don't worry about it. You'll get back."

Don was not so sure. He supposed it could be the pain he was in but he could not see himself running after someone with this metal rod in his leg. It felt like it would hurt if he even got up to walk and he was certain he would not be doing that any time soon. He noticed the forensics kit sitting in the chair and the camera there with it. "Where you been?" he asked. "To a crime scene?"

"Uh, yeah," Danny answered. "I thought I would drop by here to see you."

"Aren't you supposed to take that back to the lab first?"

"Well, I didn't collect any evidence. I left the crime scene to Jo and…"

Don stared at him a moment. "Why?" he asked.

Danny sighed. "Mac is in the ER," he said. "That Wayne Bryant kidnapped him last night and dumped him out on a beach this morning along with another victim."

Don almost sat up but he could not sit up at the moment. "What?"

"I didn't want to tell you about it right now. He dumped Mac out on the beach nude and he had put artificial nails on his hands too."

"We have to get that guy."

"We will. He's injured two of you."

"How is Mac?"

"I don't know right now."

"What did that maniac do to him?"

"He was unconscious when we found him."

Don sighed. "How did he wind up kidnapping Mac?"

"We went into the apartment building after Bryant and Mac had to stay in the truck. He got him while we were in there is all I know."

"That guy is too slick. It's going to take some slick tactics to get him."

"He thinks he's untouchable. We've dealt with people like that before. They always make a mistake. You remember Suspect X. She thought she could go around this city killing people and get away with it, but she finally got caught."

"This is Mac's wedding day. What's he supposed to do about that?"

Danny shook his head. "Hopefully, they can get him straightened out in a little while. Maybe it's nothing too serious."

"I hope not."

Mac was lying in the ER barely conscious. The doctor had managed to get him to open his eyes but he knew nothing that was going on. He was being given glucose and the doctor went out to the waiting area to talk to someone who knew Mac. Christine was just arriving and saw the doctor come in. She walked over to him. "Are you Mac Taylor's doctor?" she asked.

"Yes, I am," the doctor answered.

"How is he?"

"Is he a diabetic?"

"No."

"He appears to have been injected with insulin."

Christine frowned. "He was kidnapped by someone who was a diabetic," she said. "Is he going to be alright?"

"We are treating him now but he has a ways to go. He's very weak. If they had not found him when they did, he most likely would have died."

"Can I see him?" Christine asked.

"Not yet," the doctor replied. "We'll let you see him soon."

"Okay."

Christine sat down in the waiting room feeling incredibly lonely. She had prayed for Mac before and she would be praying for him this time too. She could not help but think of their wedding that afternoon. She wanted him to be there even if he had to be in a wheelchair. They could go on a honeymoon later. She would take him home with her and take care of him until he was well…if he had to have care like that. She did not know anything about what happened and what it would do to him.

After a few more minutes, Mac started to look around him. There were nurses around him and a doctor. He wondered how he got there. He could not seem to hear anything they were saying. Then he felt a stick in his arm and he grimaced slightly. It seemed to hurt very bad. He did not think he had ever been so tired and he tried to remember how he had gotten there but he could not seem to think at the moment.

Danny went back out to the waiting room and found Christine there. "Hi," he said.

"Hi," Christine replied. "What happened to Mac?"

"We're not sure but we know the suspect we've been after kidnapped him." Danny frowned. "I'm sorry about this…I mean, it's your wedding day and all."

"Don't worry about that. We're going to get married anyway, whether he is in a wheelchair, on crutches or whatever."

"Hopefully he will be out of here. I don't think he was injured except…I don't know. He was drugged or something."

"The doctor asked me if he was a diabetic."

Danny scowled. "The paramedic asked that. He thought he was having a sugar low."

"Didn't you say that the suspect was a diabetic?"

"Yeah. Maybe he gave Mac a dose of his insulin."

Christine could not imagine what that would do to someone. She did not know much about diabetes but she knew that non-diabetics did not need insulin from an outside source and it could definitely kill them. She had often thought it was strange that people thought sugar was poison to the body but sugar was used to save diabetics' lives. She also knew that a person needed a certain amount of sugar in their diet.

Mac was starting to comprehend where he was now. "What…happened?" he asked, thinking he sounded very slow.

"You're going to be fine," the doctor said.

Mac was not so sure of that. He felt like he could not even lift his arm but he thought he felt better than before. He still felt like he could not think clearly but he knew he was in a hospital room with nurses and doctors around him.

"Do you remember what happened to you?" the doctor asked.

Mac thought about that. "I…I don't know," he said. "I was…" He remembered sitting in the truck and…he looked at the doctor. "I was kidnapped."

The doctor nodded and wrote on his chart. "What happened after that?"

Mac thought. "He took me to some house," he said. "And he…" Mac looked at his hands which still had the neon pink nails on them. "And he put these on me!" He was starting to remember everything now. " know…it was that Wayne Bryant. He's a suspect in a case we're working on."

"I think you're going to be fine but you have to let us run some more tests."

Mac rubbed his face and then looked disgusted at those nails on him. "Can't we get these off?" he asked.

"We can soon," the doctor said. "Just relax. You're not out of the woods yet."

"Why do I feel so nervous?"

"You were given a dose of insulin, and I assume you're not a diabetic."

"No, I'm not."

"You're very lucky that you survived at all."

"I feel lightheaded."

"That's a symptom of this too. Just relax and we're going to get you something to eat too. You should be feeling better after that."

Mac tried to sit up. "I'm supposed to get married today!" he exclaimed. "Isn't this Friday?"

"Yes," the doctor said. "Now you lie down and relax."

Mac could not believe this. "How long will I be in here?" he asked.

"Probably all morning, but if you relax and do as we say, you can be out by noon."

Mac tried to relax. "Has Christine been here?" he asked.

"A beautiful blond?" the doctor asked.

"Yes, she's definitely a beautiful blond."

"Yes, she's been here. She's out in the waiting room I think."

"Can I see her?"

The doctor nodded. "Very soon." He wrote on his chart again. "What is your name?"

"Mac Taylor."

"Do you know where you are?"

"In the hospital."

"And you remember how you got here?"

"Yes. Someone kidnapped me."

"Did that person give you a shot of insulin?"

Mac thought a moment. "Yes, he did. I remember. He tied me to a chair and gave me insulin."

"Do you remember how much?"

"No. I didn't see."

"Well, you're a lucky man."

After that, the doctor went out and told Christine that she could go in and see Mac. She hurried down to his room and was relieved to see him awake. "Mac!" she said as she walked into the room.

Mac was relieved to see her too. She sat on the bed and hugged him. "I was so worried," she said.

"I'm okay now," Mac said. "I am going to be out of here in time to marry you too."

Christine kissed him. "Don't worry about that right now."

"I am going to worry about it. You go and get ready for that wedding and expect to see me. I don't care if I have to crawl down the aisle."

Christine smiled and kissed him again. "I love you so much," she said.

"I love you too and I promise I am not going to take you for granted anymore. I'm sorry for that."

"What do you mean?"

"Taking it for granted that you understand when I can't make it to a date and worrying that I wouldn't make it to the wedding. You shouldn't have to worry about that."

"Mac, it doesn't matter if we get married today or tomorrow or…"

"Yes it does. You should be able to rely on me and depend on me to do what we plan to do. I might not make it to every date but, there is going to be time just for you."

Christine stroked his hair and face. "I'll be there when you get there," she said.

"I will be there."

Christine kissed him again and then left. She would get ready for that wedding. She smiled as she thought of Mac. She had never felt like he took her for granted but she loved him.


	16. Chapter 16

Jo and the others were at the lab analyzing the evidence that they had collected. "This is definitely the gun that was used in all the murders," she said. "And it has Mac's prints on it."

"The substance on the victim's fingers is just like all the rest," Danny said. "It's glue."

"He escaped us again. We need to push those pictures and get out there and see who has seen this man. Someone has to know where he is. He won't go back to that apartment, but we need to talk to Mac and see if he knows where he was." Jo took off her lab coat. "I'm going down there to talk to him now."

Jo went down to the hospital and found out that Mac had been put in a room for observation. She went down to the room and he was sitting up on the side of the bed. "What are you doing?" she asked.

Mac jerked the covers over him. "I'm sitting up," he said. "What are you doing?"

"I came to see if you can tell us anything about where Wayne Bryant took you."

Mac considered that. "It was an old house," he said. "I was in the trunk of the car but it took us about thirty minutes to get there, I guess."

Jo wrote that down. "We can do a thirty mile radius and see what's there then," she said. "Anything else? Did you hear anything or see anything?"

Mac thought. "I've been thinking about that but I can't remember anything that I heard that was unusual or that I saw. It was dark there where the house was. I mean it was like there were no street lights."

Jo wrote that down in her notepad. "It couldn't have been far out of the city if it only took thirty minutes to get there."

"I think I remember smelling something like…salt."

"Salt?"

"Yeah, like you smell when you're close to the ocean, but I didn't hear the ocean."

"Did you hear…planes or anything like that?"

Mac thought a moment. "I don't think so," he said. "I was unconscious part of the time that we were there and then he gave me that shot of insulin and after that I didn't know anything." Mac paused a moment and looked at Jo. "Yes, I do remember something…there was a woman."

Jo nodded. "He threw her out on the beach with you. She was killed the same as the other women."

"He threw me out on the beach?"

"Yes. That's where you were found."

Mac looked at her. He wanted to ask something else but it was embarrassing. "I still had on those pink nails," he said.

"Yes," Jo replied.

"They finally got those off." He picked up a container with the nails in it. "You can take them back to the lab."

Jo smiled. "Even here, you're collecting evidence," she said. "I'll bet you made sure they wore gloves."

"I did." Mac looked at his hands. "That hurt taking those off. They had to get a nail artist down here to get them off."

"Now you know what all women go through to look beautiful."

Mac shook his head. "Christine doesn't wear those."

"You're going to your wedding, right?"

"I am. She deserves for me to be there."

Jo folded her arms. "I'm glad to hear you say that," she said. "You just don't worry about anything. We will take care of this mess. You marry that woman and go on your honeymoon and don't be calling to find out anything."

Mac smiled. "Thanks, Jo, but I'm sure I won't be able to keep from thinking about it the whole time."

"I know, but try not to think about it when you're having that hot, steamy sex."

Mac's mouth dropped open. "JO."

Jo laughed. "You're so funny. Do you think we don't know what you're going to be doing?"

"You don't have to say it."

"Well, I don't know if I can come to the wedding, but I am extremely happy for you and I wish you all the happiness in the world, Mac." Jo walked over to him and kissed him on the forehead and then looked at him. "Not only does Christine deserve it, but you do too."

Mac was silent a moment. "Maybe I do."

Jo stood up and folded her arms. "Mac Taylor. You do."

"My life will be different."

"Different in a good, wonderful way. I see how you smile when she's around…a smile that you never had before."

Mac smiled. "She makes me happy."

"Well, I'm going to get this information to Adam, and we're going to see if we can find this maniac and then maybe we can all come to your wedding later. It's at two, right?"

Mac nodded. "We wanted to have time to get up to the cabin before dark," he said.

"We'll have a big party for you two when you get back."

"Just get him, Jo."

Jo became serious then. "We will."

Jo left, and Mac lay back down in the bed. He still felt a little weak, but they had stuffed him with food. He did not think he had ate so much in one day since he was a growing boy. He remembered how he had ate then. His mother had always said he had a hollow log in him and she could not get it filled up. He laughed to himself at that and then he thought of his mother. He wished she and his father could see Christine. They had loved Claire, and they would love Christine too. He sighed as he thought of that fact that none of his family would be there. His brother and sister lived far away and he hardly ever saw them. It had been short notice, and they would not be able to make it. He thought he was getting tired of being alone like that too. He never saw his family. He had nieces and nephews that he had never seen. He supposed that was his fault. He never took time to go anywhere and do anything but that was going to change. Christine was in touch with her family and he wanted to be in touch with his too and he could take her with him now.

Mac got out of the hospital at around 12:30, but the doctor told him that he should go for a checkup on Monday to make sure he was doing okay and that he should drink plenty of water. His legs were still sore of course but he was determined that he was going to make it to that wedding. He got a cab home and went inside to get into his tuxedo. He would just go with it on. He was sure Christine would not care if it was a little wrinkled.

As Mac was fixing his tie, his phone rang. He grabbed it off the counter and answered, "Taylor."

"So, you survived," Wayne Bryant said.

Mac frowned. "Yes, I did," he said. "It's just a matter of time before they find you."

"Catch me if you can…oh, and enjoy your wedding."

Mac heard the call end and he thought about throwing the phone but that would do no good. He continued to fix his tie and then he put the light gray jacket on. The cumber band was red as was the tie. He was not sure he thought it looked good with that gray suit, but it was what Christine wanted. She would have a red bouquet. He knew that because she told him all that. He finally got everything fixed and then looked in the mirror. He remembered the day he married Claire. He had worn his Marine uniform and she had worn a white wedding dress. He had never thought he would ever be getting married again but here he was. He put the ring box in his pocket and started for the door, but then the doorbell rang.

Mac opened the door and Danny was there dressed in a tuxedo the same color as his. "You can't get married without a best man," Danny said.

"What?" Mac asked.

"Well, you were my best man. Hey, they can spare me for an hour or two."

"Christine knows about this?"

"Yeah, she knew Don was going to be your best man but since he can't…"

"I was going to have more but she only has one bridesmaid and…"

"Hey don't worry about it. Let's get go before we're late."

"Right." Mac closed his door and locked the locks on it.

"You got a suitcase?"

Mac stared at him a moment. "Uh, well, I guess I forgot that," he said and opened the door. He could not believe he forgot that. He had not even thought about packing anything. He hurried to his room and threw his duffle bag on the bed. He grabbed some jeans, t-shirts and everything else he would need and then threw his sneakers into the bag along with a light jacket. He was sure they would need a jacket up there in those mountains. Danny looked to make sure Mac was not forgetting anything. He knew how nervous he must be if he even forgot to pack. "You got your toothbrush, deodorant…"

"Yes, I have all that," Mac said.

"Don't forget the razor. Women don't like stubble on the honeymoon."

"I have that too."

Danny almost laughed. "I can't believe I'm helping you with this."

"I think I have everything. If I don't, there's a little store up there. I'll get it there."

"Great."

Mac zipped up the duffle bag and then they headed out. They got down on the street and Danny got in the driver's seat of Mac's Avalanche. "Come on," he said.

Mac got in and headed to the chapel where the wedding would be. He blew out a breath. He thought he was more nervous now than he had been when he asked Christine to marry him. He felt pretty good now. He thought maybe he had most of his strength back. He did not want to be feeling bad today. They had a long drive up to those mountains.

When they arrived at the chapel, Mac got out of the Avalanche and stood there a moment. "You alright?" Danny asked.

"Yes, I'm fine," Mac said. "Stop asking me that."

Danny smiled. "You're as nervous as a mouse in a room full of cats."

"I can't help it. I'm about to get married."

"I bet Christine is nervous too."

"Why don't you go over and let her know we're here if she's here?"

"Let's find your room first."

"Right."

They went inside and the director, who was Christine's aunt, showed him where his room was. "Is Christine here?" Mac asked.

"Yes," Rebecca said. "She's been wondering where you were."

"Well, I'm here."

"I'm glad. I was just hoping that you would not disappoint her. She loves you dearly." Rebecca started straightening Mac's tie. "Oh, who tied this?"

Mac cleared his throat. "Me," he said.

"That's what I thought. I can see a man's work anywhere."

Mac stood still while she fixed his tie. Then she stood back and looked at him. "There, that's better," she said.

"Thanks," Mac replied.

"Now, you missed rehearsal."

"Well, I was kinda…tied up."

"I'll let you know when to go in. You just go in and stand beside the minister."

"Yes, Ma'am."

"And please don't slouch and don't put your hands in your pockets at any time. It messes up your tux."

Mac wondered how young she thought he was, but she was older than him. Maybe she thought everyone looked young. "Try not to be so nervous," Rebecca said and massaged Mac's shoulders. "You'll sweat."

"I'm not sweating now," Mac said.

"You will, trust me. I'll be right back with your rose."

Rebecca left the room and Mac stood there and looked in the mirror. He could not help but be nervous. What if Christine married him and then thought he was not as handsome as she thought? He rolled his eyes at that thought. She did not love him for his looks and he did not love her for her looks either…although he thought looks made it a little easier.

Mac paced back and forth and finally Danny came back in. "Did you see Christine?" Mac asked.

"Yeah, I saw her," Danny replied. "Beautiful, and she said to tell you that she loves you."

Mac nodded and then Rebecca walked in. "Let me pin your roses on you," she said.

Danny grinned as he watched Rebecca pin the rose on Mac's lapel. "Oh, I just hate these pins," she said.

Mac tried to wait patiently while she pinned the rose on and finally she got it to her liking. "Now, make sure you don't mess it up," she said.

"I'll try," Mac replied.

"Oh, you will do more than try, young man."

Danny could not keep from snickering at that. Rebecca turned to him next. "And what is so funny?" she asked as she started to pin his rose on.

"Well, I couldn't help but laugh at you calling Mac there 'young man'," Danny said.

"He thinks I'm ancient," Mac said.

"Everybody is young to me," Rebecca informed him.

When she had Danny's rose on, she looked at them both. "Now, you stand slightly behind the groom," she said.

"Yes, Ma'am," Danny replied.

Mac paced back and forth in the room until it was time for them to go out into the chapel. "Relax," Danny whispered.

"I can't," Mac replied. "Don't tell me that. Do you have the ring in your pocket?"

"Yes. You gave it to me yourself."

"Good."

Danny smiled. He had never seen Mac this nervous. They went out into the auditorium and stood beside the minister. "I hope I don't faint," Mac whispered to Danny.

"Faint?" Danny whispered. "You better not."

Mac thought he was nervous, but when he looked at the front bench he thought he would really pass out. Not only was Jennifer Walsh there, but she had brought some others with her. They all waved at Mac as they realized he had seen them. Mac swallowed hard and hoped they would not disrupt his wedding. Surely they would not do that. He wondered what they were all doing there. He thought it looked like every woman he had dated, even Peyton, and some he had not dated, like Quinn and Jordan.

Christine came in the door as the music started playing. Mac forgot everyone else in the place when he saw her. She was dressed in a white satin dress that was covered in lace and had a lace skirt around the bottom that came up to the knees and the rest of the dress was form fitting. She smiled as she saw the look on Mac's face. She did not see anyone else in the room either.

They exchanged their vows and then exchanged rings. Mac smiled as he slid the ring onto Christine's hand and they looked into each other's eyes. Then they were pronounced husband and wife. Mac's smile brightened as he got ready to kiss her. "Are you ready?" he asked.

"I've been ready, Taylor," Christine replied.

They kissed and then they were off to the reception. Mac looked at the cake as they went to the table. It had red roses on it. "Did you make that?" he asked.

"I did," Christine replied and put her arms around his neck and gave him a big kiss. "I can't wait till this reception is over."

"Me neither."

Soon, everyone came into the reception area, including all the women who had been sitting on the front bench. Mac frowned as he saw them line up at the table. He could not imagine what they were doing there. Maybe they wanted to embarrass him. He and Christine fed each other cake and drank punch together. Mac got himself a piece of cake and then Rose walked up to the table.

"I guess you finally found your way out of your depression," Rose said.

Mac frowned. "It was a long road," he said.

"Well, I hope you will be very happy."

"Thanks."

Christine was standing beside Mac. Rose shook her hand and congratulated her. Next in line was Polly, who had taken Mac to the roller derby. She was wearing a red dress that was rather revealing. Mac did not think she had changed at all. "I'm surprised you got him down the aisle," she said. "I sure couldn't get him anywhere."

Mac drank some more of his punch and tried not to acknowledge that remark. She had wanted more than he wanted to give when they went out on that one date. He had known he did not want to go on another date with her. Christine looked at Mac. "Who was that?" she asked.

"Nobody," Mac replied but then he saw that Peyton was coming up to the table. He did not want to talk to her but it was too late.

"I'm surprised you didn't invite me to your wedding," Peyton said.

Mac frowned at that. "I didn't think it would be appropriate."

"Oh why not? Are you afraid I'm going to tell her that you were a great lover?"

"Peyton."

Peyton laughed and walked on. Mac glanced at Christine to see how she was taking all that, but she was looking the other way and did not seem to be paying much attention but then she looked at Mac. "What is she doing here?" she asked.

"I don't know," Mac said.

Jordan came up next. "He's a great friend," she said.

Quinn came up to the table and got herself a piece of cake. "Kissing makes him nervous," she said and smiled at Mac.

Mac rolled his eyes and then looked at Christine. "You're going to have to tell me about all these women," she said.

"Christine, I didn't…"

Aubrey was next. "Congratulations, Mac," she said. "And to you too, Christine."

Jennifer Walsh came over to the table next. "He's quite a Casanova," she said.

"I am not," Mac argued. "Did you bring all those women here?"

"I just wanted 'Christine' to know what a playboy you are."

"I never did anything to you."

"You didn't give me that exclusive story like you promised."

"It's not over yet. The guy is still out there."

"And here you are getting married."

"I have a right to happiness."

"Oh, sure you do."

Mac could not believe she did that to him and he was sure Christine would want to know what all that was about. He supposed he knew what their conversation would be about on the way to the mountains but it did not matter. They had not accomplished anything except maybe embarrassing him a little.

When the reception was over, Mac and Christine went out to the Avalanche. Mac helped her get in and then he went around and got in. "Let's go to your apartment and change before we go," Mac said. "I brought my stuff with me."

"Yes, and I have to pick up my bag too," Christine said.

Mac smiled. "You think we'll make it to the mountains today?"

Christine gave him a seductive look. "We might not."

They got to the apartment building and went in. "Come on," Christine said and pulled him into the bedroom. She kissed him as they got into the room. She turned around. "Now unzip this dress."

Mac looked at the zipper and then pulled it down. She started to turn around but he grabbed her around the waist and kissed her on the back of the neck. Christine giggled and turned around to face him. She pulled the dress off her shoulders and let it fall down. Mac swallowed hard. "You're not wanting to get up to those mountains, are you?" he asked.

"Those mountains are not going anywhere," Christine said.

Mac took off his tuxedo jacket and let it fall in the floor and then took his tie off. "If you say so," he said.

"I do." Christine stepped out of her dress which was around her feet and went over to the bed. She threw the covers back and sat down. She started to pull of her thigh-highs but then Mac came over to her.

"Hey, I want to do that," Mac said as he knelt down in front of her. He kissed her leg as he pulled the hose off. Then he reached for the other thigh-high.

When Mac had that one off, Christine got him by the collars and pulled him closer to her and kissed him. "I want some of yours off," she said and started to unbutton his shirt. "I think this is going to be a beautiful afternoon."

Mac stood up on his knees. "I know it is," he whispered.


	17. Chapter 17

Adam was looking at maps on the computers and making a thirty minute radius from the apartment building that Wayne Bryant had been living in. "Now, see if there are any old houses out there where there are no street lights. Mac said it was very dark out there," Jo said.

Adam analyzed the areas around the radius. "There aren't many street lights here," he pointed out at an area in Queens. "It's not too far from the ocean either."

Jo looked at the map that Adam was pointing at. "How many old houses are there?"

Adam zoomed the map in further so they could see more of what was there. "There are about five houses there," he said. "You think Mac was held there?"

"He said it was very dark there but he didn't hear anything unusual and he thought the house was old."

"I guess he's just about forgot that by now," Adam said with a silly grin.

Jo put her hands on her hips. "Adam, that is not very nice."

Adam frowned. "Uh, I was just making a joke. I'm sorry."

"I'm very happy for Mac."

"Me too. It's about time he found somebody and got married again."

"It took him a long time. He really loved Claire and I can't imagine what it would be like to go through that."

"Me neither." Adam had to admit he had never thought of it like that really. He hoped Mac would be happy too.

Jamie got the message from Jo to go over to the area they had picked out and see what she could see. As she drove down the street, she looked without seeming to look but she did not see their suspect. Mac had not remembered what kind of car he had been put into except that he thought it was an old car. She could see that there were some houses there that looked pretty old and they had closed garages. There was also an old house that was for sale. She wondered if Wayne Bryant would be trying to sell an old house.

Jo and Adam were trying to find out where Bryant had lived as a child but they had not found anything so far. "There has to be something…or there has to be someone who knows something about him," Jo said. "See if you can locate his mother."

"I'll get on that."

Jo went to her office and sat down. She hoped Jamie saw something or that Adam could find something. It made her nervous that the guy was still out there, not to mention that the media was trying to make them out to be incompetent because they had not caught him yet. They could not catch someone when they did not know where he was. He was as slippery as an eel. He had even managed to kidnap Mac and hold him captive for a night. She wondered why he had not killed Mac, but she thought he just wanted to humiliate him. She just hoped he was not planning anything else against Mac. She also wished Don Flack was around. She never thought of how much they depended on him for everything until now that he was gone. She knew Jamie was out there, but she did not know her very well. Mac liked her though and thought she was just as competent as Don.

Jamie finally parked on the street in the neighborhood she was watching. She would have to keep a low profile. She thought she could probably blend in with the people around there. People were out walking and there was a park there too. She got out of the car and strolled out to the park. There were several people out there, some walking dogs and some with children playing on the playground equipment. She thought maybe she should show them a picture of the suspect and ask if any of them had seen him. She took the picture out and went over to a woman who was swinging her child in a swing.

"Hi," Jamie said. "It's a nice day, isn't it?"

"Yes," the woman answered. "Not too hot today."

Jamie showed her the picture of Wayne Bryant. "Have you seen this guy around?" she asked.

The woman looked at the picture. "No, I haven't." She looked at Jamie. "Are you a cop?"

"I need to find this guy, and if you see him, be careful. He's a murderer."

"A murderer?"

"Yes."

Jamie walked on to the next person but they had not seen Bryant either. She tried not to look conspicuous as she walked around the park. Finally, she saw a woman fitting the description of the victims. She went over to the woman who was sitting on a park bench reading a book. "Hi," Jamie said as she sat down.

"Hi," the woman replied and looked back down at her book.

"Could I ask you something?"

"Sure."

Jamie showed her the picture. "Have you seen this man?"

The woman looked at the picture and then at Jamie. "Yes, I have. That's Matt."

"Matt? Matt, who?"

"Matt Reese. We met a while back at the gym."

Jamie frowned. "The Straighten Up gym?"

"Yes, that's the one. How did you know?"

"Ma'am, what is your name?"

"Teresa."

"Have you met this man somewhere in this neighborhood? At a house?"

"Yes, I have."

"Can you show me which house?"

"Of course. What is this about?"

Jamie showed her badge. "This man is a murderer," she said. "He has killed five women and kidnapped my boss."

Teresa looked horrified. "That can't be," she said. "He is so nice."

"Of course he is. He wants you to trust him so he can get you into a situation and…you would be his next victim."

"I just don't believe that."

"You can believe it. If you would come down to the precinct with me, you might give me some information that could help stop him. Are you meeting him here?"

Teresa stared at Jamie a moment. "Yes. He was going to meet me here and we were going to his place to watch a movie," she said.

Jamie got her phone and called Jo and told her what was going on. "This is the best lead we have had," Jamie said.

"Let her stay there on the bench and wait for him," Jo said. "Maybe he has not seen her yet. We will be there soon."

Jamie explained to the woman what they were doing. "Please just cooperate with us so we can get this animal off the street," Jamie said.

Teresa seemed to consider that. "I'll stay here," she replied.

"Good."

Jamie walked away from Teresa. She looked around the park at all the people who were there. She hoped none of them would get hurt in this but if things did not look normal, Wayne Bryant might get suspicious. She would have to get the woman and her kid off the playground. She walked over to her and explained what was going on and told her that she should take her child to safety. "Don't look like you're in a hurry," Jamie said. "Just act like you're ready to leave."

The woman nodded and headed for her car. Jamie sat down on a different park bench and watched Teresa who was still sitting and reading her book. She hoped that woman would not try to tip Bryant off to keep him from being caught. She was sure he was picking her for his next victim.

Danny soon arrived at the park and strolled out to the tennis court to watch the people who were playing tennis there. He got his phone and called Jamie to pinpoint Teresa's position so he could be watching too. He soon knew who he was watching. He sat down on the bench beside the tennis court to watch. He had his gun concealed so no one could see it. He looked around at all the people in that park and he hoped they could catch that guy without incident. He hated trying to take down a suspect when there were a lot of people around.

Jo arrived at the park next and made her way out to a park bench and she had a Kindle with her so she could read. She figured this would be the most she had read since she had started working in her line of work except when she read up on cases. She hardly had time to sit and read anymore. They would have to take that guy down when…and if, he arrived. She wondered if he would see them there or if he was even watching them.

Mac and Christine were lying in bed now. He stared at the ceiling although he felt sleepy. Christine was cuddled against him asleep with one of her legs over him. He could not help but think about that case they had been working on since he was not occupied at the moment. He had definitely been occupied for a while. He had not felt like that in a very long time but now, he was wondering if they had any other leads on Wayne Bryant. He looked at Christine and thought she looked so beautiful. He knew she would be upset if she knew he was lying here thinking about that case.

Mac gently got himself out from under her and got out of the bed trying not to wake her. She appeared to be sleeping soundly. He bent and got his cell phone from his duffle bag and then went quietly into the bathroom. He could not help it, he wanted to know what was going on. He called the crime lab to see who would answer…

Sheldon heard the phone ring and he went to get it. "Crime Lab, this is Doctor Sheldon Hawks."

"Sheldon," Mac said.

Sheldon was surprised. "Mac? What's going on? Is everything okay?"

"Yes. I just want to know what's going on with the case."

Sheldon paused a moment. "Are you kidding?"

"Do you think I'm kidding?"

"No. Well, we think we're close him. Jamie found a woman out there in the park close to where we think he might have carried you and she knew the guy. She was sitting there waiting for him, so Jamie, Jo and Danny are out there waiting for him. They're going to try and nab him if he shows up."

"Great. How long have they been waiting?"

"I'm not sure, a little over an hour, I guess."

Just then, Mac felt a hand on his back and it slid around his waist. "What are you doing, Mac Taylor?" Christine whispered.

"I'll talk to you later, Sheldon," Mac said and ended the call. He laid the phone on the sink counter. "I was just…"

"Mac this is our honeymoon. You're not supposed to be investigating a murder."

"I was just checking to see if they had any leads."

Mac turned around and faced her. "I'm sorry," he said.

Christine stared at him a moment and then rubbed his chest. "I might forgive you if you come back in there in that bed with me and let me make you forget that you're a cop," she said.

Christine took his hand and led him back into the bedroom. "Now, no more calling the office and asking about cases," she said and shoved him onto the bed.

"I'll try," Mac replied.

"You'll do more than try." Christine climbed into the bed with him. "I'll handcuff you to this bed."

Mac would have thought that was sexy and kinky except that he remembered being cuffed to that table. "Will you?" he asked, trying not to think bad thoughts.

"I have a pair of cuffs for just that occasion."

"Where?"

Christine leaned over him and reached into her nightstand and pulled out a pair of handcuffs which had red feathers on them. Mac laughed when he saw them. "What's so funny?" she asked. "You think I won't cuff you?"

"You don't want to do that, do you?" Mac asked. "I can't put my hands in all kinds of places then."

Christine laughed and kissed him. "Oh, I don't know how I waited so long for you," she said.

"I definitely don't ever want to be without you again." Mac rubbed his hands up her smooth back and buried them in her hair. He pulled her into a passionate kiss that did not stop at that.

Jo was getting tired of sitting on that bench waiting. She wondered how long it would be before the guy showed up. Teresa had said that he was going to come and meet her there. Jo got up and walked around under the big Oak trees there. They were big and gave a lot of shade. She leaned on one of the trees and lounged for a moment and then she saw a man walking along the sidewalk toward Teresa. Jo pressed the speaker in her ear. "Danny, that's him," she whispered.

"I see him," Danny replied. "Let's see if he sits down so maybe we can catch him off guard."

Danny got up from the bleachers and started walking toward the bench that Teresa was sitting on and Jamie started moving around too. There were lots of people out there walking around so it was not going to grab his attention unless he just recognized one of them. Danny tried not to stare at him because he would know him if he saw him.

Bryant walked over to the bench and began talking to Teresa and then sat down beside her. When Danny saw that he was seated, he started running that way as did Jamie. Jo could not believe Bryant's arrogance. She wanted to get that guy behind bars where he belonged. She was moving that way too but she would let Danny and Jamie take him down. She was not one for that type of thing but she would shoot him dead if she had to.

Danny got close enough to Bryant that he noticed him coming that way. He was on his feet in a second. "Freeze!" Danny yelled as he drew his weapon. "N.Y.P.D.!"

"Get on the ground!" Jamie yelled.

Bryant took off running across the street and went down a residential road. Danny and Jamie were behind him in full pursuit. Jo called it in and there was backup on the way. Bryant ran down that street and darted between two houses as Danny and Jamie were gaining on him. They went down between the houses and came out at the other end and noticed that he had turned to the right. They went after him, having to dodge clotheslines as they went. Most of them did not have clothes on them, but some did. They were trying to keep their eyes on him.

Bryant ran down all the back yards until he came to a fenced in yard. Danny could not believe how fast the man went over that fence. Danny went over the fence and Jamie went around the other way to try and head the man off when he got out on the other side of the fence. Danny heard sirens coming as he was running across that yard. He hoped they could get there and help them catch this guy because he did not seem to be tired yet.

Jamie was going around the house that had the fenced in yard and she got around to the other side of the fence just as Bryant was jumping down off the top of it. "Stop!" Jamie yelled, but Bryant turned to run again. However, she shot him in the leg. He fell but he was not ready to give up. When Jamie got over there to cuff him, he tried to trip her, but then Danny was there.

"You're under arrest!" Danny said. He put his knee down in the man's back.

Jamie was checking Bryant's leg while Danny cuffed him. "He'll be alright," she said.

"Good! I wouldn't want him to miss that lethal injection!"

They got him up and started back to the street. "You can't prove I did anything!" Bryant yelled.

"Yes we can!" Danny replied. "You have the right to remain silent!"

"I don't want to remain silent!"

"If you give up that right, anything you say will be written down and used against you in a court of law!"

"They deserved to die! And so did that detective! He should have died!"

"I guess it just wasn't his time! You don't have that say! You also have the right to an attorney! If you can't afford one, they'll make one represent you whether he wants to or not!"

Jamie tried not to laugh. She had heard the Miranda Rights given a lot of ways but not quite like that. She supposed it did not matter how he told him as long as he did. A police car was in the street and Danny took Bryant to it. "Get in there!" he said.

"I won't go to jail!" Bryant declared.

"I wouldn't bet on that." Danny put him in the car after he checked him for weapons and shut the door. Bryant was still yelling in the car.

Danny looked at the officer. "Jamie here is going to go with you," he said. "Don't trust that guy and inch!"

"We won't," Jamie assured him and got into the car.

Danny was tired after all that running and climbing over that fence and he was glad to see Jo coming in the Avalanche. She stopped to pick him up. "Well, that's over," Danny said.

"Teresa is on her way to the precinct for questioning too," Jo replied. "I suppose we could interrupt Mac to let him know that we got that maniac."

Danny looked at her. "You think we should?" he asked. "They might be…you know."

"So? Do you know that he called Sheldon earlier?"

"You're kidding?"

"No. Do you think I would be worried about this if I was on my honeymoon?"

"I don't know. I guess it would be hard to forget that there was a serial killer out here."

"I'm going to call him when we get back to the office. I just want to see if he's out of breath."

Danny snickered at that. "I'll let you do that," he said. "It was a nice wedding, not too long or too mushy."

"Oh, Danny, a wedding is supposed to be mushy."

"I guess."

They got back to the office and Jo went into her office and sat down at the desk. She had a long report to write. She got her phone and dialed Mac's number…

Mac and Christine heard the phone vibrating on the bathroom sink as they were still in bed. "You're not going to answer that, are you?" Christine asked.

"Who would call me?" Mac asked. "Maybe they caught that guy."

Christine watched as Mac got out of the bed and hurried into the bathroom to get the phone. She whistled at him. "You have a fine butt," she said.

"So do you," Mac replied.

Christine laughed. She heard him answering the phone…

"Mac," Jo said. "We caught that guy."

"Great!" Mac said. "How did you get him?"

"Well, he was meeting who was probably his next victim and he had no idea that we had found her. We waited and finally, he showed up and we got him."

"That sure does take a load off of my mind."

"I'm sure it does. Now you can get back to that hot, steamy sex."

Mac rolled his eyes. "Jo."

Jo laughed. "Have fun, Mac."

Mac could hear her laughing as she ended the call. He shook his head and then went back to the bed. "I'll never live down all that teasing," he said.

"Teasing?" Christine asked.

"Yeah." Mac got back into the bed and Christine lay her head on his shoulder again. He stared at the ceiling. "You know how it is when somebody is a newlywed…especially somebody like me."

"Oh. Well, they're just happy for you."

"I hate being teased though and Jo…" Mac shook his head.

"What about Jo?"

"She likes to say 'hot, steamy sex' just to see it embarrass me."

Christine propped up on her elbow and looked at Mac. "Well, we definitely had that…more than once already," she said.

"Oh I know it but I work with her and I don't like to hear her say that."

"Why don't you tell her?"

"I don't know. She would never say that to you. She just likes to make me squirm."

"Why? Oh, and by the way, who were all those women?"

Mac frowned. "I don't know why Jo likes to make me squirm. I guess it's just the way she is."

"Uh huh, and what else?"

"What do you mean? I have never gone out with Jo."

"I think if you had asked her, she would have gone."

Mac looked at Christine. "Are you saying that she has a crush on me?"

"Why else would she say things like that to you and tell you that you're sexy?"

"Christine, we just work together and she does that to try and not think too much about the situations we're in."

"Oh, the way Don makes jokes?"

"Yes."

"Well, what about all those women at the wedding? Who were they?"

"I had gone on at least one date with some of them. Others, I had never dated."

"Then why were they there?"

"I don't know. They just wanted to embarrass me."

"Who was the first one, the woman with the red hair? She congratulated us."

"Oh, that was Rose." Mac put his hands behind his head. "She was the first woman I dated after Claire died. It had been three years. I wasn't really comfortable going out and we didn't get very far."

"What about the woman in the red dress?"

Mac cleared his throat. "Polly?"

"Oh, her name is Polly?"

Mac looked at Christine. "Why do you want to know all this?" he asked.

"They came there for some reason. Go ahead and tell me. What was that she said…she couldn't get you anywhere?"

"Well, I only went out with her one time and she took me to the roller derby."

"The roller derby? Wow, that sounds romantic."

"It was just a date and she was too young for me anyway. She wanted more than I wanted if you know what I mean. She was too aggressive for me."

"Did somebody set you up with her?"

"Yes. I think they did it for a joke."

"Mac Taylor. Who would have thought? What about the other red head? The one who said kissing makes you nervous?"

Mac frowned when he thought of that. He did not want to tell her about that. "She had been my partner a long time ago. She wanted the job I have now," he said.

"Oh. And…you dated her?"

"No."

"You…kissed her?"

Mac knew there was no way that he could keep her from knowing. "Yes. I did. It was a big mistake and it never happened again."

Christine stared at him a moment. "You were married."

"I was, and she was always teasing me and she was jealous of my relationship with Claire and I guess she wanted to see if she could break it up. She practically admitted that once when she was sent here to evaluate my lab."

Christine did not know what to say to that. She had never thought of Mac crossing the line, and would never have thought he would. What if Jo decided to tempt him? Would he give in? Mac noticed her silence. "Christine…" He was not sure what to say. He certainly could not deny that he did that.

"Claire never knew that, did she?"

"No. I guess it was one reason I had such a hard time dating again after she died. I felt like I was cheating on her then too. I worked all the time so I wouldn't have to go home." Mac looked at her. "Christine, I promise, I would never cheat on you."

"Not even with a kiss?" Christine asked.

"No. I will never let myself get into that situation again. You believe me, don't you?"

Christine looked into his eyes. "Yes, I believe you." She kissed him. "Let's not talk about this anymore…although I was just curious about all those women."

"They just wanted to embarrass me."

"I think they did. Your face was red and white too."

Mac smiled. "That's not exactly how you want your wedding to be," he said.

"Well, we still got married and I can't get enough of you."

"Okay, but tomorrow morning, let's get up and go up to the mountains. I want to get up there."

"It's a deal."

"Great."


	18. Chapter 18

Jo was at the precinct preparing to interrogate Wayne Bryant. Danny was there with her and they would record everything he said since he had not stopped talking since he had been arrested. "That guy is a piece of work," Danny said.

"Well, we'll see how he feels when he gets into that maximum security prison," Jo replied.

Danny followed her into the interrogation room. "When am I getting out of here?" Bryant asked as soon as they came in. "You don't have any evidence against me."

Jo and Danny sat down at the table. "Are you kidding?" Jo asked. "We have so much evidence against you, we can put you away for the rest of your life." She leaned on the table. "Or send you to the gallows."

"I didn't do anything! They deserved to die."

Danny looked at Jo. "Well, that was a confusing statement." He looked at Bryant. "You said you didn't do anything and they deserved to die all in one breath. If you didn't do anything, why did you say that?"

"You know what I think?" Jo asked. "I think you just wanted to see how long you could keep doing that and get away with it. The thrill of the chase?"

"That detective should have died too," Bryant said. "He shouldn't have survived."

"But he did, and you know something…he will be the first on the witness stand because he knows who kidnapped him. Those other victims will use his voice to convict you…and ours too."

"He can't prove anything."

"Why do you say that?" Danny asked.

"He just can't."

Jo laid the pictures of the women who had been murdered on the table. "Why did you kill them?" she asked.

"They were all vain," Bryant said and folded his arms. "I'm not telling you anything else. I guess I need a lawyer." He looked at the pictures. "Where's the picture of Detective Taylor? Why don't you put it on here?"

"He didn't die."

"You just don't like that picture."

"Are you sure you don't want to say anything else?"

"No. I'm done."

"That's funny," Danny said. "You talk half the night and now you don't want to talk. You know, you're also going down for what you did to Detective Flack. I'm sure he will be out in time to testify against you too."

"Whatever."

Danny and Jo could not believe the guy thought he could get away with his crimes but they knew he would not. They stood up. "Well, we'll get you your lawyer," Jo said.

They went out of the interrogation room and Jamie met them. "How arrogant can a person get?" Jamie asked.

"Apparently so arrogant that they don't even see the death penalty right in front of their face," Jo said.

"I think he's doing all that so he can plead insanity," Danny said. "He's playing with us but we know how intelligent he is because he evaded us all this time."

"He won't get an insanity plea."

"But it can sure delay the process a long time if he is evaluated."

"So we'll wait."

They went up to the lab and Jo put the folder away. She yawned as she sat down at her desk. She was done with her report and she was tired of this case. She was going home to get some rest. She thought of calling Mac and just disturbing him again but she thought she better not. She remembered how people used to just try and disturb newlyweds on their honeymoon if they knew where they were. She did not know where Mac and Christine were. They had been planning to go up to the mountains.

Jo left the office and headed home. She thought she would take the next day off and just sleep all day. She definitely needed the rest and deserved it too…

At 4am, Mac got out of bed. "Wake up, Sleeping Beauty," he said. "Let's get up and get going."

"Do we have to go this early?" Christine asked sleepily.

"Yes. Come on. I want to get up to the cabin before they rent it to someone else thinking we're not coming."

"Oh, Mac." Christine stretched. "Let's just stay here."

"No. Come on. You promised." Mac went into the bathroom to get a shower. They had had a pretty wild night and he wanted to get cleaned up before he went anywhere.

Christine heard the shower come on. She was used to getting up early, but not this early. She sat up in the bed and looked toward the bathroom. She smiled and then got up and went in there.

Mac was standing under the water when Christine stepped into the shower. "So, you're up," he said.

"Oh, yes, I'm up," Christine replied and kissed his back.

"You know, I didn't know you were such a wild woman."

"I'm just wild about you."

Mac jumped as she squeezed his buttock. "Hey," he said. "Let's not start that now. I want to get going."

"I'm getting going."

Mac turned around toward her and she kissed him. He turned her around under the water. "I thought you were sleepy," he said.

Christine pushed her hair back and let the water flow over her. "You're just trying to seduce me now," Mac said as he admired her form.

"Oh, this water feels so good," Christine said.

Mac grabbed the bar of soap and began washing himself. Christine looked at him. "Okay, if you want to be that way," she said.

When their shower was done, they went into the bedroom to get ready to go. "So what kind of road is this on?" Christine asked. "I hope it looks like a recognizable road."

"It is," Mac said. "But it's dirt and gravel most of the way. You can't expect a paved road up there."

"Why not? We have paved roads everywhere else."

Mac smiled. "Well, it's supposed to be rugged and roughing it."

"Oh, so we're going to rough it?"

"Yes, but the cabin is nice. It's been modernized so you don't have to worry about walking on a dirt or plank floor or having no bed to sleep on or having an outhouse."

Christine stopped what she was doing and looked at him. "You would actually take me somewhere like that?" she asked.

Mac's mischievous smiled spread across his face then. "I sure would," he said.

"You had better not."

"I used to go up there and enjoy a cabin that had no bathroom, and I slept on a cot. It had a fireplace and a small kitchen with a wood burning stove. Now, we have to have all the comforts of home."

"Exactly. I don't want to be a cavewoman."

"I am not a caveman."

"And it is much easier for a man to get along without a bathroom than a woman…I hope you know that and know why."

"Yes, I know why." Mac sat down on the bed to put on his hiking boots. "If I didn't know that, I wouldn't know why it felt so good last night to be in bed with you."

Christine smiled at him. "That is just dirty," she said.

"Dirty? I could be a lot worse than that."

"Are you going to talk dirty to me?"

"Do you want me to?"

"I might."

Mac tied his shoe and then started putting the other one on. "Well, let me see…"

"Not now. You can do that later. I'm ready to get out of here now."

"Oh, good. Let's get out of here and grab some breakfast somewhere. I'm starving this morning."

Christine laughed. "Now I know why you never wanted to eat," she said.

Mac stood up. "Don't start that," he said.

"You didn't need so much food, did you?"

"I guess when you don't have anything to use energy for, you don't need so much."

Christine got her hiking boots on too and then put her hair up. "I hope you're not taking me to some steep trail where we have to look off into a deep valley and barely have footing," she said.

"I would never do that," Mac said. He kissed her and then got everything back into his duffle bag. "You know, when we get back, we're going to have to move into the same apartment."

"That's a good idea," Christine said. "I will be glad to get out of this small apartment."

They headed out and got into the Avalanche. "Well, I guess this trail must not be too rugged or you wouldn't take this truck up there," Christine said.

"This truck is made for the trail," Mac said. "It has four by four capability. Don't worry, it's rugged enough for that trail."

"But won't it get scratched?"

"It might, but I've been up there with it before."

They went to Mac's favorite diner to eat breakfast. It opened early so it was already open when they got there. Christine held Mac's arm as they went in. "Oh, I just love having you all to myself," she said.

Mac smiled. "I like it too."

They got a table and sat down. The waitress soon came to their table since there were not many customers in there. Mac ordered a full breakfast with everything this time and Christine did the same. The waitress brought their coffee and orange juice. Mac fixed his coffee. "I'm starving," he said. "I don't think I can drink this coffee until I get some food. It makes me feel sick when I'm this hungry."

"When was the last time you were this hungry?" Christine asked.

Mac looked at her. "I don't remember but coffee is not what I want to drink right now." He sipped his orange juice.

Christine sipped her coffee. "Oh, that is good," she said. "It's kinda chilly this morning."

"Yeah, but it will get hot later with this heat wave we've been having."

"I'm glad it was cloudy yesterday. I didn't sweat so much in my dress."

"I probably sweated enough for both of us."

"Were you nervous?"

"I was. I guess it was because of the anticipation of everything."

"Well, you have nothing to worry about," Christine said. She leaned on the table. "I am completely satisfied."

Mac smiled and looked at the paper that was lying on the table. "I am too." He picked up the paper and frowned as he saw the picture on the front page.

"What is it?"

Mac let her see the picture on the paper. Christine was shocked. "Where did they get this?" she asked.

"There must have been someone there," Mac said.

"I didn't know, Mac."

"I didn't know either. They didn't tell me."

"I guess they didn't want you to know it."

Mac laid the paper down and rubbed his face. "They could have told me that I was naked out there," he said.

"Don't worry about it," Christine said. She picked the paper up and looked at the story. "This was written by Jennifer Walsh, your friend."

"She's not my friend," Mac said a little sternly. He shook his head. "I'm sorry. I just don't want you to say that."

"I won't then."

"She obviously still wants to embarrass me, but that guy was the one who did that."

Christine frowned as she read the paper. Walsh insinuated that Mac had been drunk and that the murder weapon was there with him. She did not even want Mac to see this. He had not read the story and she was glad. She folded the paper and dropped it on the seat beside her. "We're going to go up to the mountains and no one is going to see you for a whole week," she said.

"You're right," Mac replied.

Just then, Jo walked in. She smiled and walked over to their table. "Hi," she said. "I thought you two were up in the mountains."

"Not yet," Mac said. "So, did you get that maniac taken care of?"

"We did. He's behind bars. Can you believe he is claiming he is innocent?"

"I'm not surprised at anything anymore."

Mac looked at Jo. "Why are you up so early?" he asked.

"Oh, I came to get breakfast for me and the kids. I don't want to cook this morning and I thought I would just get something before they have to go off for their day. Then I am going to sleep the rest of the day away."

"Well, you should."

"See you when you get back."

Jo went over to the counter. Christine looked at Mac. "Do all of you come here?" she asked.

"No. Jo and I had breakfast here once," Mac said.

"I thought you never dated her."

Mac looked at her. "We didn't. We just had breakfast."

"Oh."

"Are you going to assume something about everything I do?"

"No. I just wondered why she shows up here this morning."

"I guess it's like she said. She wants to get some breakfast. This place has the best breakfast…besides your place."

Christine smiled. "I don't know, it might be better than mine."

"No. You're a good cook."

After they finished their breakfast, they headed up to the mountains. Mac thought about what Christine said. He had never wanted to have a relationship with Jo. He did not think she thought anything about that either but he supposed Christine would be suspicious now because she knew he had kissed another woman while he was married to Claire. He wished he had not done that but he could not go back and undo it. He had felt so guilty after that, he had brought Claire roses a lot after that. He had hoped that Quinn would not tell her about that but she had not as far as he knew. He supposed everyone had regrets in their life and he was glad his was not any worse than that.

"You're thinking hard," Christine said.

Mac looked at her. "I'm sorry," he said. "I guess I am thinking."

"About what?"

Mac considered whether he really wanted to discuss that or not but now that they were married, he supposed he needed to discuss things that bothered him. "I just wonder if you're not going to trust me," he said.

Christine looked confused. "What? Why?"

"Because of what I told you about Quinn. I feel like you're not going to trust me now."

"That is absurd. I think that you learned your lesson from what you told me."

"But you wondered why Jo was there at the diner this morning and you think we dated."

"I don't. You said you didn't."

"Well, I just think you're…testing me."

"I'm not. I have to admit that it bothered me when you said you kissed her while you were married but it's in the past."

"It's better to leave the past in the past."

"Well, they brought it up," Christine pointed out. "Do you think they did that just to cause problems between us?"

"I don't know, but it was cruel joke."

"If they think that is going to cause problems with us, they have another thought coming. It will take a lot more than that."

Mac looked at her. "You mean that?" he asked.

"Yes, I mean it. Do you think I would marry you if I didn't love you and trust you?"

Mac sighed. "I guess not," he said. "I guess I've been fretting over nothing."

"I guess you have."

Christine moved over to the middle of the seat and leaned on Mac's shoulder. "I can't wait to get to our little love nest in the mountains," she said.

"Love nest?"

"Yes. Do you really think we're going to get around to fishing?"

Mac smiled. "Well, I intend to. There's more to life than having sex, you know."

"Not right now. I want to just lie in bed with you."

"You don't want to get out there with nature and fish?"

"Can we fish nude?"

Mac laughed at that. "I don't think so," he said.

Christine laughed. "I think I will enjoy fishing, but you have to put the worms on the hook."

"Oh, no, you have to bait your own hook now. You can't be a fisherman if you're not going to bait your hook."

"You mean you won't do it for me?"

Mac pretended to consider that. "Well, I don't know," he said.

As they got to the entrance of the National Forest, Mac stopped at a small store. "We better get some supplies," he said. "I always stop here and get stuff."

Christine got out of the truck and followed him to the truck. "What kind of stuff?" she asked.

"Stuff like bait and toilet paper and all that, some food stuff."

"Mac, are we going to a controlled environment or a rustic cabin in the middle of the woods?"

"It is a controlled environment. The cabin is cared for year round. I don't own it, I'm just renting it for us."

"Have you ever owned a cabin in the mountains?" Christine asked as she went in the door.

"Well, actually, I do own one," Mac said.

Christine looked at him. "You do?"

"Yes. It's up in the Rockies though. I haven't been up there in quite a long time but I have somebody that sees after it."

"You're kidding."

"No. I'm not."

"I just learn something about you every day."

"There's always something to learn." Mac smiled. "I think you learned a lot last night."

"You did too, but you haven't got it all yet."

Mac chuckled. "Okay, let's talk about that at the cabin."

Mac went over to the fishing poles and started looking at them. "You don't have a fishing pole?" Christine asked.

"I do but I want a new one and…I'm sure you don't have one."

Christine put her hands on her hips. "And just how do you know?"

Mac looked at her. "Well, you don't want to bait your hook, and…"

"Okay. Never mind."

"I'm going to get us both a good one."

"How do you know which are good ones?"

"Experience."

Mac picked out two fishing poles. He smiled at Christine as he gave her the pink one he had picked out. "You like pink?" he asked.

"I do but I like red more," Christine said.

"Oh, well, they have a red one too." Mac put the pink one back and got the red one. "I'll take the blue one."

They gathered up the rest of the supplies they would need and then Mac got some live bait. He held up a big fat worm in front of Christine. "Oh, stop that!" she said.

Mac laughed. "I'm going to have a lot of fun," he said.

"You won't if you keep doing that."

Mac paid for everything and then they went back out to the Avalanche. "I'm glad I have this truck. It's easy to carry a lot of stuff," he said.

Christine put the live bait in there. "No, we have to keep that up front with us," Mac said. "They might die."

"You mean I have to put up with these worms and stuff?" Christine asked.

"Yeah, but it's only until we get up there."

"Oh alright."

They got into the truck and started on up the mountain. "I think this is going to be fun," Christine said. "No stress."

"Right," Mac agreed. "We don't have to worry about anything up there."

"I'm looking forward to it, even the fishing."

"I think you'll enjoy it. It will be nice to sit there and do nothing but watch a cork."

"You fish with a cork?"

"Yeah…or bobber as people call it these days. We used to call them corks."

"I think that was because it was a real cork when people first started using them."

"Probably."

Just then, they heard a cricket sing in the bait box. Mac looked at Christine. "Hey, it's part of nature," he said.

"I am not touching one of those," Christine said. "You can forget that."

"Well, we'll see. By the time we leave up here, you might be a real mountain woman."

"I doubt it."

"We'll see."

Mac smiled as Christine lay her head on his shoulder. He thought they would have a great time up there and he was glad there would be no stress. They could sit there in the quiet and learn more about each other. He thought it was a perfect honeymoon. At least they would be alone.


	19. Chapter 19

Mac and Christine arrived at the visitor's center and got the key to the cabin they were staying in and the map to it. "You mean you have to have a map?" Christine asked as they went back out to the truck.

"Yes," Mac said. "How else are we going to find it?"

Christine got into the truck. "What have I gotten myself into?" she asked.

Mac smiled. "You'll see."

As they traveled up the mountain, Christine had never actually seen anything like that. It seemed to go straight up in places and she wondered if they would make it and she dreaded coming back down that steep hill. Mac realized she was holding onto him tighter. "Are you scared?" he asked but he could not take his eyes off the road because it was very curvy and narrow.

"A little," Christine replied.

"Relax. I've been up here before. We'll be fine."

"How are we going to get back down that steep hill?"

"Oh it's a lot easier to get down that to get up."

"How far is it?"

"About ten miles in a straight line but we're not going in a straight line by any means."

"We're certainly not."

"Don't worry."

Soon, they came to a small parking area that held two vehicles and Mac pulled into one of them. Christine looked around them but did not see anything but trees and rocks and a walking trail that led up through the trees. "Where is the cabin?" she asked.

"Right up that trail there," Mac said. "Just a little way."

"A little way? How are we going to carry all that stuff?"

"Well, it's not that much."

"Mac."

"Don't worry, I'm going to carry most of it."

They got out of the truck and went to the back to gather up their stuff. Mac put his duffle bag on his shoulder and then put the fishing gear in a backpack along with the other stuff they got from the store, and then he picked up the case of water. Then they walked over to the trail.

"Mac, I don't know if I can carry all this up that trail," Christine said.

"Honey, it's not that steep," Mac replied.

"How can you carry all that?"

Mac smiled. "Well, not to sound sexist, but I am a man, and besides that, I had to carry a heavy pack when I was in the Marines. I guess I'm kinda used to carrying stuff."

"Mac Taylor, that is the most sexist thing I have ever heard you say."

"Well, if you can't make it with yours I'll carry it part of the way."

"Oh, you would love that, wouldn't you? You're carrying practically everything and I have my bag and my fishing pole."

"You're not used to carrying heavy stuff."

"You think I'm just a delicate little flower?"

Mac smiled at her. "Yes, I do," he said. "And there's nothing wrong with that."

Christine looked at him a moment. "Well, I don't mind you being a big, strong man either."

"Good. I'm glad we got that settled."

"Who said it was settled?"

Mac chuckled at that. "Come on, She-Ra."

"I'm coming, He-Man."

They started up the trail and when they came to a small hill, Mac helped Christine up. She looked at him. "I hope it's not much further," she said.

"It's not," Mac replied.

They went on a little further and then they could see the log cabin. Christine stopped a moment and looked at it. "That is just beautiful," she said. "Does your little cabin up in the Rockies look anything like that?"

"Sorta," Mac said.

They went on down to the cabin and Mac opened the door. Christine walked in and looked around at the place. There was a big fireplace in the front room and a coffee table with a couch and chair and then there was a dining room with a table and four chairs, and on that side of the cabin there were big windows where one would see the mountains and the lake. "This is nice," Christine said.

"I sure like it," Mac said. He was setting the dial in the refrigerator and then he put the food into the refrigerator as well as the worms.

"You're putting the worms in there?"

"I have to. They will die if they get too hot."

Mac set the cricket cage on the counter. Christine walked over there and looked at them. "Oh, I can imagine what a concert we're going to have tonight," she remarked.

Mac smiled. "Hey, I like to hear crickets," he said.

"I don't. They are annoying when you're trying to sleep."

"Right this way, Madam."

They went into the other room, which was the bedroom. Mac turned the light on. Christine smiled as she saw that the bed was a king sized bed and had red satin on it. "Oh, that looks very sexy," she said.

Mac looked at her with a sly grin. "Does it?" he asked.

"Yes."

Christine set her bag down and moved over toward Mac. He backed up, making sure he was going toward the bed. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"I think you know," Christine replied.

"Are we going to start this now?"

"You interrupted my sleep this morning and now, I'm ready to get in that bed."

"Well, I better check it for spiders."

Christine almost gasped and stopped. "Spiders? Are you trying to make me not want to get in there?"

Mac laughed. "No," he said. "But you know when a place is vacant for a while, you have to check it when it's in the woods like this."

"Oh, Mac!"

Mac went over to the bed and pulled the covers back. He looked under all the covers and then looked under the bed too. "Nope, no spiders," he said.

"Are you just trying to tease me?" Christine asked.

"No. I got in this bed once and there was a…"

"Don't tell me! Were you here alone?"

"Yes. You are the first woman I brought up here."

"Are you telling me that you came up here and slept on satin alone?"

"No I just had them put these one here for this week."

Christine stared at him a moment. "You're serious, aren't you?"

"Yes. What? Do you think I'm making this up?"

Christine could see that he was not. "No, I don't think that," she said. She put her arms around his neck and kissed him. "Are you going to make love to me now?"

Mac pulled the holder out of her hair. "I think I will," he said and kissed her again. He picked her up and put her on the bed and then climbed on top.

"This might be difficult with our clothes on."

"Don't worry," Mac said as he was kissing her. "We'll take care of that."

While they were enjoying themselves, they heard a loud sound outside the cabin. Mac almost sat up and looked around. "What was that?" Christine asked.

"I don't know," Mac answered. He got up and walked into the front room. He looked out the windows in the dining room but did not see anything out there. He went to the front door and wondered if he wanted to open it but he did not know of anything that should be out there. He turned the door knob and opened the door slowly as he looked out.

"Mac! What are you doing?" Christine asked.

Mac almost jumped. "What are 'you' doing? I'm looking outside. Don't yell at me like that."

Mac looked as he went out the door onto the porch which had a wooden walk that led out to a pier that was out over the water so that fishing would be easy. He noticed that the garbage can was turned over beside the cabin. Each cabin had its own large trash can outside. "Something turned the trash can over," he said.

Christine came out onto the porch and looked. "Mac, that is a big can," she said. "What is big enough to turn that over?"

Mac looked at her. "I don't know. The can is probably empty so it might not be too hard to turn over."

Christine folded her arms. She wondered if Mac was just trying to make her feel better. She watched as he set the can back up. It did not look so easy to turn over to her. "Whatever it was, it's gone now," Mac said and came back to the porch. "Now, let's get back to what we were doing."

Christine smiled and ran back into the cabin. Mac went in and locked the door and then ran into the bedroom where Christine had already jumped onto the bed. Mac pulled his t-shirt off and threw it in the floor. "Are you doing me a strip tease?" Christine asked as she sat up on the side of the bed.

Mac laughed. "No, I was just going to take off all my clothes and get in that bed with you."

"Oh come on. Can't you add a little flare to it?"

"Now, you're just teasing me."

"You're so shy. There's nobody here but us."

"I know that."

"So do it!"

Mac laughed again. "Are you going to grope me?"

"I will if you want me to!"

Mac put his hands on his hips. "I don't think strippers usually have shoes on," he said.

"So take them off."

Mac leaned on the dresser and took his shoes and socks off and then he looked at Christine. He could not help but laugh. "Come on," he said. "I'm not good at this."

"I'm your wife, Mac," Christine said. She walked seductively over to him and rubbed his chest. "You would want me to do that for you, wouldn't you?"

"You can if you want."

"You don't have to be shy in front of me. I love you."

"I love you too."

"Then come on. I'll strip for you if you strip for me."

"I'll try," Mac said.

Christine sat down on the bed and waited for him to start. Mac looked at her a moment and then started to undo his belt. "You want me to throw everything at you?" he asked.

"Well, not the belt."

Mac undid his pants and then looked at Christine. "Do you have to just stare at me?" he asked.

Christine laughed loudly at that. "We need some music so you can dance a little."

"I can't believe this." Mac let his pants drop and Christine whistled at him. "You're awful. I thought I would be bad but you're worse."

"Take it off, Baby!" Christine said and laughed.

Mac had to laugh. He threw his pants over in front of the bed. "Now what?" he asked.

"You're not done yet."

"Just remember, you're next."

"I remember."

Mac finished undressing and then got into the bed while enduring Christine's whistles and whoops. "Okay, it's your turn now," he said. "Make it a good one."

Christine went over to the place Mac had been standing. "Are you sure you don't want to undress me yourself?" she asked with a pouty look.

"Hey, now, I undressed for you."

"Yeah, but you're a man."

Mac's mouth dropped open. "What is that supposed to mean?" he asked.

"I want you to undress me yourself."

Mac sat up. "Well, come over here then," he said.

Christine went over to the bed and sat down in front of him. She put her feet up on the bed so he could take her boots off. "That was so sexy when you undressed me after we got married," she said and bit his ear.

Mac untied her boots and threw them in the floor as he took them off. Then he took the socks off. "I'm not kissing your feet this time," he said. "They're sweaty."

Christine gasped. "Mac Taylor!"

Mac laughed as she lunged for him. She kissed him passionately and then stared into his eyes. "I love you," she said.

Mac pushed her hair back out of her face, seeing the passion and sincerity in her eyes and kissed her again. "And I love you."

She traced around his chin with her finger and then stroked his hair. "What did I do without you?"

"I think we were two very lonely people and we were searching for each other the whole time," Mac said.

"I think you're right."

"So let's stop talking and make each other feel good."

Christine smiled. "I'm ready."

Don Flack had never felt so much pain in his life. They had gotten him up today and he had walked on crutches and that ankle had known that gravity had changed direction on it. They intended to send him home the next day. He did not know how he would get around. He had to take pain medicine because the pain became so excruciating at times, and it felt like something was bearing down on his bone and hollowing it out while he lay there in the bed. It was like a cold, excruciating pain. He was lying on the hospital bed again but this afternoon, they would come for him again and he would have to get up again. He dreaded it so bad.

Jamie came in just as Don was thinking about that. "Hi," she said and smiled. "I brought you some lasagna that I made myself."

Don looked at her but he did not look very happy. "What's wrong?" Jamie asked.

"I hurt," Don replied. That was all he wanted to say, but he supposed he should explain why he was in a grump. "They got me up to walk on crutches this morning. Can you imagine?"

"No, but they're trying to help you."

"They may be, but it didn't feel like help. Right now that bone feels like it's hurting from the inside out."

"Don't you have something to take for that?"

"Yeah, but it wears off before the next dose."

"Hey, you're going to be alright."

Don sighed. "I don't feel like I am."

"I'm going to help you all the way, okay?"

"I know you will, but you don't have to worry so much about me."

"I'm not going to worry about you, I'm going to kick your butt and make you get up."

Don smiled. "You always have to try to make me smile, don't you?" he asked.

"Yes." Jamie leaned over him. "Everything will be okay, Don."

Don knew she meant to make him feel better, but he felt so helpless and the pain was horrible. "You won't run off and leave me if I cry will you?"

"Absolutely not. I'll just cry with you."

Don looked at her. "Well, you may have to."

Jamie kissed him and then sat down beside the bed. "So, do you want some of this lasagna?" she asked.

"It would be great," Don said.

Jamie pressed the button to raise the bed up a little. "And you made it yourself?" Don asked.

"Yes," Jamie replied. "Are you saying I can't cook?"

"No. I just didn't 'know' that you cooked."

"I can cook in more ways than one."

Don smiled. "Oh, now you're just flirting with me," he said.

"Just trying to make you feel better."

Jamie got the lasagna out and she had two plastic forks with her. She gave one to Don and they started eating the lasagna. "Mmm, that's very good," Don said.

"I knew you would like it."

"Oh? Have you been talking to Danny?"

"Yes."

Don laughed. "You admit it then."  
"I had to find out what you like so I could make it and surprise you."

"Oh. Well, I appreciate it, Sweetheart."

"Hey, if you want me to, I'll stay here and wait till they come to get you and make sure they treat you right."

"They treat me right. It just hurts."

"I've never broken a bone so I don't know anything about it but my brother broke one once and it was very painful."

"You're lucky."

Don was just glad that Jamie would be there this time. At least he would not have to go through all that alone. He hoped maybe he would wind up like Mac one day…finally married. He wondered if Jamie would want to get married. He looked at her. "What do you think you will want to do in the future?" he asked.

Jamie looked at him a moment. "I don't know," she said. "Why?"

"Oh, nothing. I was just wondering."

Jamie smiled. "I like the idea of getting married and buying a house."

"A house?"

"Yes. I don't want to live in an apartment. I want a nice house with a fence and maybe a few kids."

"A few? How many is a few?"

"I don't know. I like kids."

"Yeah, they're good to have around."

"Good to have around? They're sweet and innocent and loving."

Don smiled. "Until they start talking."

"Oh Don. You can't expect them to be any different than we were."

Don was a little surprised by that statement. He remembered all the trouble he had gotten into when he was a kid. His mother was looking for him half her life, he thought and his grandmother had gotten a switch after him more than once. He had to laugh at that.

"What's so funny?" Jamie asked.

"I was just thinking of all the trouble I had gotten into when I was a kid."

"So you're saying that if I had your child, I would never have any peace of mind again?"

Don laughed. "You might not."

Jamie stood up and leaned over him. "It might be worth it," she said and kissed him.

Don stared at him a moment. "You think so?"

"I don't know yet. I haven't been dating you long enough."

"Oh, well, that's okay. We have time."

Jamie smiled and sat down. "Yeah. We don't have to get in a hurry."

At the lab, Danny and Lindsay were helping to get the final details on the case they had just finished. "I think I felt a kick," Lindsay said with a smile.

Danny moved around the desk that he and Lindsay shared and put his hand on her belly. "Where?" he asked.

Lindsay put his hand in the right place and they waited. Then they felt the baby move. Danny smiled. "Hey, I felt it," he said.

"Isn't that so sweet?"

"Yeah." He looked at Lindsay. "I love you."

"I love you too."

"I just hope this one is a boy."

"And what if it's not?"

"I'll be outnumbered. How can my whole family have boys and I can't get one?" Danny asked as he moved back to his side of the desk.

Lindsay laughed. "I don't think that has anything to do with it."

"People used to think it did since the male sperm determines the sex of the child."

"Well, I guess you like girls."

"I'm just a big pushover."

Lindsay laughed. "You're a good daddy."

"I try to be and you're a great mom too."

"Oh, wait till she's a teen. Then we'll be pulling our hair out."

Danny leaned on the desk. "What are we going to do then?"

"I don't know but we don't have to jump into it right now. We just arrive there gradually."

"That's the good thing about it."

It would be an adventure, they knew that…


	20. Chapter 20

That afternoon, Christine woke up and found that Mac was not in the bed. She got up and walked to the bedroom door and looked out into the other room. "Mac," she said but she did not hear any reply. She went into the room and looked out the front window and saw that Mac was out at the pier fishing. He was sitting in a lawn chair with his feet propped up and he was dressed in shorts and a tank top and shades. She went back into the bedroom. He could have at least woke her up.

Mac took a deep breath of the fresh air as he cast his line out again. Then he sat and watched the orange cork in the water. He was glad he had a whole week up there at that cabin with no one but Christine around. It would surely get rid of all his stress. He certainly had been warm in that bed, but it was warm where he was now, and he wanted to eat fish for dinner. He hoped Christine liked fish.

Christine came out of the cabin. She had put on a tank top and a pair of shorts too and put her hair up in a braid. She walked out to the pier with her fishing pole. "You could have woke me up," she said.

Mac looked up at her and smiled. "Well, I did drag you out of bed this morning," he said. "You were sleeping so peacefully, I didn't want to disturb you."

"So, have you caught anything?"

"No. I haven't been out here long." He gestured to the chair beside him. "Have a seat."

Christine sat down and put her fishing pole together. "Are you going to help me get this thing fixed?"

"Yeah, I guess. You'll have to hold my pole while I am doing that."

Christine took Mac's fishing pole and he took hers and started fixing the line with weights and a hook as well as a cork. "Are you going to bait your own hook?" he asked.

"Oh, you're doing such a fine job, I thought I would just let you do it."

Mac smiled and reached for a big fat worm. "I guess there is an art to this."

Christine laughed. "Is there?"

"Yeah. You have to get that worm on there just right or it will get off or the fish will just take the worm and leave the hook."

"Oh."

Mac looked at her. "I think I will let you do your own next time," he said.

"Maybe I will want to next time."

Mac finished fixing the line and the looked at her. "Do you want me to cast for you or do you know how?" he asked.

"I think I can manage that," Christine said.

Mac took his pole and then sat to watch while Christine got ready to cast hers out. "Don't cross it over mine now," he said. "I want to catch a fish since I already caught you."

Christine gave him a mock glare. "You are just awful," she said.

Mac smiled and watched her cast. "Nice," he said. "You didn't catch me or the dock or anything with the hook."

"Mac Taylor!" Christine sat down in her chair and put her shades on. "We'll just see who the best fisher…person is."

Mac laughed. "Yeah, we will, but just remember, I baited your hook for you."

"So?"

"So, that means, I helped you."

"Oh, you!"

Mac laughed and leaned back in his chair. He sighed with contentment. Christine looked at him and smiled. "Mac," she said.

"Huh?"

"What did you first notice about me?"

Mac considered that. "Well…the first thing that grabbed my attention was when you said I was 'one of the most transparent people' you had ever seen. That surprised me because I had been told that I was thick, and stuffy and insensitive. I wondered what you meant by that."

"Who on earth would tell you that you're insensitive? One of those women at the wedding?"

Mac smiled. "Yeah. And Peyton stayed mad at me half the time because I couldn't meet her expectations. I was having a hard time then."

"So, what else did you notice?"

"Your smile. It was so sincere and warm and that look in your eyes. I don't know, it made me curious."

"Curious?"

"Yeah. I wanted to know what it meant. And of course, I thought you were pretty, and you were not too wild for me, and most of all, you understood my job."

Christine smiled. "I guess that would take a lot of getting used to for a woman who has never been around a cop," she said.

"I just love you."

"I always thought you had the most beautiful eyes and that shy smile."

"There you go with that shy stuff again. I am not shy."

"Yes you are. You hide it well but you are. You were afraid someone would see it when we argued or when we kissed."

"I don't like arguing in public. That's a personal thing between me and you."

"And you want everyone to think that everything is perfect between us?"

Mac looked at her then. "I didn't say that, but I think when we argue it's between us and nobody else."

"I agree, but I have a hard time pretending that nothing is wrong."

"You don't have to pretend."

"I guess I kinda let it show when we argued about your problem you were having."

Mac nodded. "Yeah, I think everybody knew there was something wrong but didn't know what. I was just embarrassed about it and I thought I could work through it and no one had to know about it."

"But it didn't work that way, did it?"

"No, and I learned something. It didn't seem as bad when you knew about it. That day that I forgot the color blue and you covered it up for me…I think that moment was when I really realized that I loved you and didn't ever want to lose you. And then I saw how Lindsay wasn't even angry at Danny for making blue circles around her eyes and I think I had forgotten what real love is…or I didn't want to let myself fall in love. Then I came and told you."

"Oh, that made me the happiest woman in the world when you said that. I realized what you had been trying to say before when you were hem-hawing around about your problem."

Mac smiled. "I can't deny that it was hard for me to let you into my life like that but I am so glad I did."

"I am too because I was tired of being on the outside looking in."

"We were made for each other."

Christine smiled. "I think we were. We're two solemn people who like to have quiet times together and then go wild when we're behind closed doors," she said.

"We're pretty wild. If only other people knew what I know…"

"You are just awful."

Mac noticed that his cork was bobbing up and down. "Hmmm, looks like something out there is getting curious about that worm," he said.

Christine looked and saw that the cork was bobbing wildly then and suddenly, it went under the water. Mac jerked the line and then began reeling in his catch. "Wow, he's a fighter," he said.

Christine watched as Mac fought the fish and finally got it up to the pier. He got the net and picked the fish up out of the water. "Hey that's a good one," he said as he admired the large catfish on the end of his line. He looked at Christine and smiled. "He's a whopper."

"Mine might be bigger," she replied.

"You're going to have to do a lot of pulling if he's bigger than that."

"Men are always worried about size, aren't they?"

Mac took the fish from the net, being careful not to let it poke him with its fins. He got the stringer and put the fish on it and let it down into the water. Then he sat back down in the chair. "Now, if we can get another one, we'll have dinner," he said.

"We're going to eat them?" Christine asked.

Mac gave her a confused look. "Why would I go to all that trouble if I wasn't going to eat it?" he asked. "You make fish plates in your restaurant."

"Yeah, but the fish comes already filleted."

"Well, today, you're going to see that process because I intend to make a good dinner out of that fish."

"I'll let you take care of the preparation."

"Don't worry. You won't have to dirty your hands at all."

"Really? Are you going to do all the cooking too?" Christine asked.

"Yeah. I'm going to cook them on that grill."

Christine had not even noticed a grill. "What grill?"

"It's over there in the small shed. That goes with our cabin too."

"Oh."

They were silent for a few minutes just soaking in the warm feeling of the sun and relaxing. Then Christine noticed that her cork was jumping up and down. "Mac!" she said.

Mac looked that way. "What?"

"I think there's a fish out there."

Mac looked at the cork and saw that it was dancing around in the water. "Well, don't get nervous," he said.

"I'm not nervous!"

Mac smiled. "Have you never caught a fish before?" he asked.

Christine looked flustered then. "No, I haven't! I can't help it if I am a city girl. I don't need to catch fish!"

Suddenly, the cork went under the water. Christine gasped as she felt the pull on the pole. "Reel it in!" Mac said and stood up.

Christine stood up too and started to reel the line in. "Oh, Mac, he's strong!" she said.

"He's fighting for his life," Mac said.

Christine reeled the fish up to the pier and then Mac scooped him up. She backed up as he got the fish up where they could see it. Mac smiled. "Hey, that's a big one!" he said and held the fish up in front of her.

"Mac! Just take him off the line!"

Mac laughed. "Are you scared of this fish?" He moved closer to her.

"Mac Taylor!"

"Don't you want to take him off the hook?"

"NO!"

Mac laughed and then took the big catfish off the hook. "Alright then," he said and grinned at her.

"You better stop teasing me like that," Christine said.

"Oh come on. You love it and you know it."

Christine waited until Mac had the fish on the stringer and then she shoved him off into the water. She was laughing then until Mac suddenly surfaced and grabbed her ankle pulling her into the water with him. "Oh!" Christine yelled.

Mac was laughing the whole time. "You got me wet, so I got you wet," he said.

"I just can't get the best of you."

Mac moved closer to her and put his arms around her waist. "Yes you can," he said.

Christine put her arms around his neck and kissed him. "Oh yeah, I forgot you're putty in my hands when it comes to this," she said and kissed him again.

"I am."

"You like having sex in the water?"

Mac smiled. "Well I don't know if I can while I'm swimming. I can't touch the bottom without my head being under the water."

"You just hold onto the pier and I'll do the rest."

Mac's smile turned mischievous. "Are you going to take advantage of me?"

"Yes, now back up to that pier."

"What is somebody shows up unexpectedly?"

"Why would they?"

"Oh, I don't know…something like that boat out there?"

Christine gasped and looked behind them at a boat that was not far from them with two fishermen in it and they seemed to be coming that way. She looked at Mac. "So much for that," she said and climbed out of the water.

Mac was glad he had seen that boat or he might have been in a very awkward position when they came too close. He climbed out of the water as well and the boat got closer. "Hey!" one of the men called.

"Hey," Mac replied. "This is a private dock."

"Oh, we know. Just wondering if you've had any luck out here today?"

"We caught two. It's enough for us."

"We're staying over in the next two cabins. Our wives don't like fishing so we're out here without them."

"Well, my wife likes it fine."

"Must be nice."

Mac wondered what they were doing there. Were they trying to see who all was there? Or scoping them out? He did not like it when people showed up unannounced and suddenly like this at a private area. "We're just about to go in," he said.

"You come up here often?" the man asked.

"This is our first time up here together," Mac said.

"Oh, must be an anniversary."

"No."

Mac was not going to give them so much information. He supposed he was suspicious but it was his nature and he did not have to tell them anything. "I'm sure there are plenty of fish out there," he said.

The man seemed to get the hint at that. "Sorry to disturb you folks," he said. "See you around."

Mac watched as they turned the boat and left. He looked at Christine. "Well, that was awkward," she said.

"Yeah," Mac agreed without going any further with that conversation. He got the stringer up with the fish on it and they headed back to the cabin. "I'll clean these."

"You want me to do anything?"

Mac smiled. "You want to hold them while I pull the skin off?" he asked.

"What?"

Mac laughed his obnoxious laugh. "You have to skin catfish. They don't have scales."

"I am going in the cabin."

"Come here. We'll cook these in butter and eat them for dinner." He gave her the live bait. "Put them back in there."

Christine took the packages and went to the cabin door. She stopped and looked at Mac. "I think it would have been fun," she said.

"What? Skinning the fish?"

"No. Having sex in the water out there."

Mac smiled. "I think it would have been too but I'm glad I saw that boat because I was about to give in."

"Oh, you were?"

"Yeah. You know me." Mac laid the fish on the table outside that was there for that purpose. "I'm just putty in your hands, remember?"

Christine stared at him a moment. "I still want to try it," she said.

"What if somebody is watching?"

"Well, maybe they should get a life." Christine walked over to him. "Why don't we go back out there when the sun is going down?" she whispered.

"That might be better than in broad daylight," Mac said. "Now, unless you're going to help me, you better get on in there with that bait."

"I'm going."

Mac got busy with the fish, but he scowled as he wondered what those guys were doing over there. They had that whole lake out there to fish in and they had no reason to come over to their pier. He thought maybe he and Christine would go on a hiking trip and see who was in the next two cabins. He did not want Christine to be afraid but he was not going to let this go by without…investigating. He rolled his eyes at his own self. He supposed it was in his blood, after all, he did it all the time.

Mac did not like skinning fish but he loved the kinds of fish they had caught. They had plenty of meat and tasted good. He supposed he could just leave the skin on. It fell off when it was cooking anyway. He remembered going on fishing trips with his father, and his father would always make him skin the fish. "None of this cooking them with the skin on," he would say. "We're not too lazy to take the skin off."

Mac smiled at that memory. His father did not believe in being lazy. He supposed it was why his father had such a hard time staying in bed at the end of his life. He did not like being lazy either but he sure liked to relax sometimes. He had enjoyed sitting there fishing with Christine. Having here there seemed to make it even more relaxing. He was glad she liked fishing even if she did not like touching the fish. He smiled at that, but that was okay with him. He finally got the fish cleaned and then took them inside to wash them. Christine was standing in the kitchen drinking water.

"I got these done," Mac said. "Now I have to wash them."

Christine watched as he washed the fish thoroughly. She put her arms around him from behind. "I love you," she said.

"I love you too," Mac replied.

"Even if I'm not a mountain woman?"

Mac chuckled at that. "I didn't marry a mountain woman. I married a beautiful, city chef."

"Oh, you know how to butter me up."

"Well, I'm about to butter up these fish and get them cooking." Mac laid this fish on a paper plate. "You want to go on a hiking trip later?"

"Oh, I don't know. I think I want to exercise another way."

"Woman, what is going on with you?"

"You drive me crazy."

"Oh. Okay then."

"I have waited for you a long time."

"Well, we have the rest of our lives."

"How do you know how long that will be?"

Christine felt Mac stiffen in her embrace. That statement had shocked Mac just a little. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"Mac, I mean that we'll get old one day," Christine said.

Mac turned and looked at her. "I know what you meant. I didn't mean to react that way. I just don't like to think about that."

Christine kissed him. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up anything unpleasant for you."

"You didn't. Let me get these fish fixed and then I'll fire up that grill."

"I'm learning something today."

Mac smiled. He went to the refrigerator and got the butter out and a bell pepper. He also got out two ears of corn. "You're going to cook all that?" Christine asked.

"Yes," Mac said. "This is going to be a good dinner."

Mac took the aluminum foil out and made four pieces and put one fish and one ear of corn in separate pieces. Then he put the flavoring in with a piece of butter, salt and a piece of bell pepper. "Now, we just wrap them up and lay them on the grill like this and in a little while, we will have a delicious meal that will melt in your mouth," he said.

"I can't wait," Christine replied.

They went outside and Mac fired up the grill. When he had the fire going good, he put the food in and closed the lid. "Well, now we just wait," he said.

"Why don't we go inside while we wait," Christine said and gave him a seductive look.

"I don't mind if I do."

Mac smiled as they went inside. He gave one more look at the grill and then closed the door. It would be a good meal…


	21. Chapter 21

**I hope you all like this chapter. I guess it is a little more detailed than the others. Thanks for all the reviews and hope you will send more. miss37**

Mac came from the cabin with no shirt on and wearing his shorts he had on before to check the grill. It was certainly smelling good and it was steaming. He punched a hole in one of the fish packs and steam rushed out. He could see that the fish was white and buttery and ready to eat. "Hey, come on out here, Christine!" he called. "It's ready!"

"I'm coming," Christine said. "I can't exactly go out like you did."

Mac laughed. "I'm glad you wouldn't."

Christine came to the door of the cabin. "I might if I knew no one could see me, but after that boat came by, who knows?"

"Well, let's get these and eat them." Mac took the packs off the grill and put two on each plate and they went back inside. "I think I want to just eat in here."

"That's nice," Christine agreed and closed the door. "We can enjoy this beautiful view over here."

"It's is nice, isn't it?"

"Yes. Have you ever thought of living in the mountains?"

Mac set the plates on the table and then went to get some forks and spoons. "Well, after Claire died, I thought about going up there to that cabin in the Rockies and just becoming a hermit," he said. He walked back over to the table with the forks and spoons and two cups. "I was pretty depressed then."

"I can't imagine."

"If it hadn't been for…my friends, I might have stayed up there."

Christine looked at him. "Your friends at the lab?"

"Yes. Stella came up there and so did Don."

"Who is Stella?"

"She used to work at the lab. She was a good friend."

"What happened?"

"She moved away to New Orleans. I guess she wanted to get a taste of the South."

Mac opened the packs so they could get the food out. "I love this," he said as he jerked his finger back from the hot foil. "It's hot."

"I can see that," Christine said. "I'm surprised Stella didn't come to our wedding."

"Probably can't get away. It was short notice."

"Right."

They finally got everything unwrapped and began eating. "Oh, that is so good," Christine said. "I didn't know you were such a chef, Dear."

Mac smiled. "Well, I do know how to grill," he said. He took a bite of the fish. "Delicious, if I do say so myself."

Christine looked out the big windows at the forest and the mountains in the distance. "Wouldn't it be nice to sit and see this all the time?" she asked.

Mac looked out the window as he was chewing a bite. "It would," he said. "Maybe one day we can move out West and live in that little cabin I have up there."

"And just where is this cabin?"

"It's in Wyoming. I wanted to be around the fewest people I could find, and that was the least amount without going to Alaska and I just didn't want to freeze."

"I don't think Wyoming has more people than Alaska."

"It doesn't but they are definitely kinda grouped together."

"So, when are you going to take me to your cabin?"

Mac looked at her. "I don't know," he said. "When do you want to go?"

"The next time we take a vacation together."

"If you want to, but I have to warn you, that cabin is not like this one. It's more rustic."

"As in, almost part of the woods?"

"Yes. It's up in the Grand Teton Mountains which are part of the Rockies but a little off to the side. To me, they are the most beautiful."

"Why?"

"Because they look like fingers reaching up to the sky."

"I've never been to the mountains like that. I went to Las Vegas, but I didn't see the mountains over there when the plane landed in Denver. I just stayed in the airport."

"I'll take you there one day, but today, I want us to go on a hike."

"To where?"

"I want to show you a beautiful view I found when I was here before. I think you will like it."

"I'm sure I will."

When they were done eating, they got ready for their hike and then went outside. "How far is this?" Christine asked.

"It's about three miles up there," Mac said.

"Three miles? Are we going to make it back by dark?"

"Yes."

Mac took her hand and they headed up the trail. "We just walk up this trail and I will show you a beautiful sight," he said.

Mac did not tell Christine but he wanted to get a look at the next two cabins too. They walked about a mile and came by the next cabin. Mac stared down at it. He did not see anyone down there and there was no vehicle in the parking area. He supposed they could be gone somewhere but he did not see anything that indicated that someone was in that cabin. After they hiked another mile, they came to the next cabin. Mac could see a swirl of smoke rising from the chimney of this cabin, and there was a vehicle in the parking area. He saw a man and woman down there on the deck but he did not think the man was one of those from the boat. That made him even more wary. They kept on walking and finally came to the view that Mac wanted Christine to see. Christine's mouth dropped open as she could see the waterfall on the other side of the deep ravine that they were looking down into.

"Breathtaking, isn't it?" Mac asked.

"It's beautiful," Christine said as she grabbed Mac's arm. She looked down into the ravine which had white water rolling through it and the waterfall was rushing down into it. She looked out across the rest of the view she could see from there, which was rolling mountains and valleys. "This is gorgeous."

"I knew you would like it."

Christine took her cell phone out and took pictures of the waterfall. "I have to send a picture of this to my sisters."

"I think I will get one for a wallpaper." Mac took his phone out and took a picture as well. "Nothing like a real picture that you take yourself."

They headed back down the mountain. "What are we doing tonight?" Christine asked as they were nearing the cabin.

"I don't know," Mac said. "What do you want to do?"

Christine smiled. "Why don't we go for a late evening swim?" she asked. "While the water is still warm and it's getting dark."

Mac had to smile at that. He unlocked the door of the cabin and let her go in first. "You want to get out there and have sex in the water, don't you?" he asked.

"Of course. I want to have some adventure."

"And what if somebody shows up again?"

"Nobody is supposed to be around here. We can go skinny dipping in the shallower place."

"Oh. I thought I was going to hang on the pier and let you do all the work."

Christine laughed. "That will be fine too." She put her arms around his neck. "Then we can come in and build a fire and lay here together naked."

"Mmmm, sounds good."

Later that evening, Mac woke up from his nap. Christine was beside him and they were lying in the floor in front of the fireplace, but they had not built a fire yet since it was not cold yet. He could see that the sun was starting to go down. He smiled as he thought of what Christine wanted to do. He certainly enjoyed being with her and loved her excitement. He turned toward her and ran his finger along her chin and then across her forehead. She shifted a little and then he kissed her neck. "What are you doing?" she asked.

"Well the sun is starting to go down," Mac said.

Christine opened her eyes. "Oh yeah, we were going skinny dipping."

Mac smiled. "It's been years since I went skinny dipping."

"Me too but I think it will be fun."

Christine got up and smiled at him. "I'll beat you there!" she said and ran toward the bedroom.

Mac laughed and got up and went after her. She was already undressing when he got in there. "Hurry up!" she said.

"Okay, don't rush me," Mac said. He thought no matter how long he was married, he would not like just jerking his clothes off.

Christine was soon undressed but she put on a robe and waited for Mac. He put his robe on and then they went to the door. "I don't see anything out there," Christine whispered.

Mac chuckled. "Are we sneaking around?" he asked.

"Yes."

They went out to the pier and looked around again, but it was getting late so probably no one would see them anyway. Christine giggled as she stuck her toes in the water. She looked at Mac with a smile and then dropped her robe. She jumped into the water and then her head surfaced. Mac could not believe he was doing this but it would be fun…that is, if no one showed up unannounced. He looked around them again and then dropped his robe. He jumped into the water with Christine. He came up right in front of her and she put her arms around his neck. "Oooh, you look so sexy when you're wet," she said.

Mac laughed. "You don't look so bad yourself," he said.

"You ready?" Christine asked and kissed him passionately.

"I think I'm always ready."

"So, are you going to hang on the pier or are we going over to the shallower water?"

Mac smiled and shook his head. "I can't believe this," he said.

"You're so shy. Nobody is going to see us. It will be like we're in a big bath tub or shower."

"Alright, I'm just trying to get used to the idea of having sex outside."

Christine held onto him as he moved toward the pier. "You mean you've never had sex outside?" she whispered.

Mac was a little surprised at that. "Have you?" he asked.

"NO, but I think it will be fun."

"Well, I can't deny it. I have."

"When? Where?"

"Do I have to tell you?"

"OH, Mac, I know you had sex with other people."

"Now, hold it. I didn't just spread myself around everywhere."

"You mean it wasn't with Claire?"

"Yes, it was with Claire. We were in Hawaii for our honeymoon and on the beach and…well, we found this cluster of rocks…"

"Hawaii, huh? And you think this is a crowded place?"

"Well, there was no one around."

"There's no one around here either."

"But I'm a lot older now."

Mac turned around with his back to the pier. Christine put her arms around his neck and kissed him. "You better get ready, Taylor," she said.

"Don't worry," Mac said as he pulled her into a longer, passionate kiss. He stopped to get his breath as Christine wrapped her legs around him and reestablished their union.

Mac listened to the slosh of the water as they moved together and felt like he was lost in Christine's love. Christine watched Mac's excitement as his hands slid down her back to hold her tighter. She closed her eyes and leaned her head back to savor the excitement she felt too but then she wrapped her arms around him and kissed him hungrily. "Get your hands up on the pier," she whispered.

Mac reached up to grab two of the posts on the pier and then gasped as Christine continued. He really felt like he was lost then and he just let her take him away to new heights of passion that he wondered if he had ever reached at the moment. He felt Christine's excitement and almost lost his grip on the pier. Christine thought she would completely lose herself too.

Finally they separated and just stared at each other. "Wow," Mac said. "Was it the water?"

Christine stroked his face. "No, I think we're just getting better," she said and kissed him again.

Mac blew out a breath and realized that the sun had set now. "Are we getting out now?" he asked.

"Do you want to or do you want to wait for another round to come?"

Mac smiled. "Let's get out and build that fire."

"Okay."

Mac got out of the water and thought his legs would not hold him up for a moment. He thought he was worn out. He got his robe and put it on. "I'll get some firewood," he said.

"Okay," Christine replied. She went into the cabin and got the covers from the bed and put them in the floor for a pallet.

Mac came in with the firewood and locked the door. He put the wood into the fireplace and got a fire going. Christine threw her robe on the couch and got on the pallet. "Come on," she said.

Mac threw his robe on the couch beside hers and crawled onto the pallet with her. He lay down on his stomach and thought he would go to sleep. Christine pulled the blanket over them and then started to rub his back. She kissed his back and rubbed it until he was asleep. She loved him so much she wanted to just hold him all the time and she thought she loved him more every time they made love. She lay down beside him and watched him sleep until she fell asleep herself…


	22. Chapter 22

**I hope you will all like this chapter. Sorry it took so long to finish. I have a book for sale in another subject besides csiny. If you would like the web address to get it, you can send me a message. :) thanks for reading. miss37**

When Mac woke up, he rolled over on his back and stretched. He realized he was in the floor. He looked out the window and realized it was morning. He felt a little chilly because the fire had gone out and he was still naked. He looked at Christine who was still sleeping beside him. He kissed her on the forehead. "Wake up," he said. "It's morning."

"Oh, do I have to?" Christine asked.

Mac sat up and yawned and stretched some more. "We slept all night," he said.

"I guess we finally wore each other out."

Mac smiled. "I think you did wear me out. I have to go and get a shower."

Mac got up and walked to the bedroom yawning. "Mmm, mmmm," Christine said.

Mac shook his butt at her and went on into the bedroom hearing her laughing. He smiled as he got his stuff to go into the bathroom. Then Christine came in there. "Now, don't attack me," Mac said. "I need a shower. I think I'm grungy."

"Grungy?" Christine laughed. "What is that?"

"I've had too much sex and it's clinging to me."

Christine really laughed then. "That is the funniest thing I have ever heard!"

Mac laughed. "You probably need a shower too."

"You're probably right."

Mac went on into the bathroom and got into the shower. The water definitely felt good flowing over him. He got himself washed and just as he was about to get out, Christine was stepping into the shower. "Oh, I missed the whole show," she said.

"Well, if you like watching somebody wash, you did," Mac replied. He kissed her. "I'm going to get us some breakfast started."

"What are we having this morning?"

"I have some bacon and stuff in there. I'm going to make some of that."

"Sounds good. I just hope there is some coffee."

"There is. Don't worry."

Mac got out of the shower and went into the bedroom. He did not want to get totally dressed yet so he just put on a pair of shorts and went into the kitchen. He was hungry this morning. He started the coffee in the coffeemaker and then got busy with the bacon. After he had some of that in the pan, he got four frozen biscuits out and put them in a pan and turned the oven on. He hoped they would get done quickly. He got the eggs out and got some into a cup to scramble them. He kinda liked cooking breakfast but he did not really like cooking the other meals except he enjoyed cooking that meal last night. He would go fishing again today.

When the coffee was ready, Mac poured himself a cup and turned the bacon over, and then he went over to the front window of the cabin and looked out toward the lake. He knew it was probably chilly out there this early in the morning. It was always chilly in the mountains no matter what time of year it was. He loved this peaceful atmosphere and quiet. It was relaxing and he had not thought much about the lab. He wondered how Don was doing so he got his phone and called him…

Don heard his phone ringing. He managed to get it out of his pocket and answered, "Hello."

"Hi, Don. How are you?" Mac asked.

"Mac? I'm about to get out of the hospital. What's going on?"

"Oh I was just wondering how you're getting along."

"It hurts, Mac, a lot."

"How long will the therapy be?"

"I don't know, at least six weeks and maybe longer. It just doesn't feel right, Mac."

"A broken bone is nothing to smirk at. You concentrate on getting well and don't worry about your job."

"I am worried, Mac. I wonder if I will ever be the same."

"You will, Don. There are a lot of people who have gotten past things like this and they are right back where they were before."

"Yeah, but I have a demanding job. I might have to run."

"I realize that but you have to look on the bright side and don't feel down about it. You're going to have to get down the road a little before you decide you will never get back. Right now it doesn't look good to you because you're having pain but just give it time. I sure had to take my time."

"I know. I'm just…I don't know."

"You'll be fine, Don."

"So how is the honeymoon going?"

"Great. We're relaxing and having a good time."

"Good. Don't be worrying about me."

"Talk to you later."

"Bye."

Mac ended the call. He hoped Don would be able to get back to his old self and do his job. He remembered how he had felt when he was recovering from being shot. At the start, it had seemed impossible but then things had started improving except for his memory. That had really seemed like it was an impossible hurdle to get over but he had made it once he let Christine know about it.

Mac looked at the bacon and then took it from the pan. He put it on the paper plates and then looked in at the biscuits. They were just barely starting to get hot. He would have to wait until they were cooking good before he cooked the eggs.

Christine came from the bedroom dressed in a blue tank top and a pair a jean shorts. Her hair was wet and she was combing it. "Something smells so good," she said.

"It's the bacon and coffee I guess," Mac replied.

Christine poured herself a cup of coffee. She fixed it with cream and sugar and then looked at Mac. "So, are we going out on the deck to enjoy our coffee?" she asked.

"I have to watch those biscuits," Mac said. "Then I am going to cook the eggs."

"I'll do it."

"You don't have to."

Christine kissed him. "I know, but I want to. Why don't you sit down over there? You work hard too."

"Well, if you say so."

Mac went over to the dining table and sat down so he could watch out the window while he drank his coffee. He could see a few deer out there in the field grazing. One of them had its head up staring around. He could also see several birds in the trees and hear them singing. That was definitely something that he never saw in New York. He could remember when his father took him fishing out in the wilderness of Illinois and Wisconsin. He remembered hearing the birds singing. He had always enjoyed that and realized that he never heard any at home then either. Nature was a beautiful thing if a person took time to notice and listen.

Mac remembered his father sitting in the boat and sitting up tall and straight as he fished. He had always tried to do the same thing but he had usually found himself leaning over and being lazy. His father would tell him stories about when he was a kid and about being in the war. He had always been amazed at how his father could remember so much that happened during his childhood. He had told him of times when he had gone fishing with his father.

Mac frowned at that thought. He wondered if Christine would want to have a child this late in life. Would he ever have a child to tell his stories to? It was definitely something to think about, and he should have thought harder about it when Claire was alive. He knew it was his own fault that he had no children. She had always wanted to have a baby and he was always hesitant. He was not sure why. He had just thought he would not be a good father.

Christine scrambled the eggs and put them into the pan. She loved cooking. It was one reason she had become a chef. She thought Mac was awful quiet this morning. She went to the bar of the kitchen and leaned on it to look into the dining room at him. He was just sitting there staring out across the fields and mountains. She wondered what he was thinking about when he stared into space like that. She thought he might tell her if she asked him.

Christine finished cooking the eggs and fixed their plates when the biscuits were ready and then she went to the dining room. "Breakfast is served," she said.

Mac smiled as she set the breakfast on the table. "Looks good," he said.

Christine sat down and then looked at Mac. "Do you say grace over your food?" she asked.

Mac looked at her. "Well, I have to confess I hardly ever do but if you want to, by all means, go ahead."

"I do want to."

Mac bowed his head while Christine said grace over the food. They started eating then. Christine looked at Mac. "What were you thinking about when you were staring out across the plains out there?" she asked.

Mac stopped chewing a moment and looked at her. "A lot of things," he said.

"Like what? What are you thinking about when you're staring out into space like that?"

"Well, it's hardly ever the same thing."

"What were you thinking about today?"

Mac looked down at his plate. He supposed this was his chance to tell her how he felt. He had to stop fretting and let her in on everything. She was part of his life now and he had to let her in. "I was thinking about when my father used to take me on fishing trips when I was a kid and I would hear the birds singing and I remembered how he looked sitting up straight in the boat fishing."

"Must have been nice."

"I remembered how he used to tell me about his childhood and about the war…" Mac paused a moment. "And I wondered if I will ever have a child to share my stories with. I wasted time with Claire and…" He looked at Christine. "I just want to know how you feel about it."

Christine sipped her coffee and just stared at Mac a moment. "Of course I would love to have your baby," she said. "It would be a wonderful experience."

Mac nodded. "I know it would. I don't want to throw time away again and keep thinking that I have tomorrow…and tomorrow might never come."

"So, you want to have a baby soon?"

Mac shrugged and took a bite of his egg. "I don't know," he said. "I just keep thinking about this and I think it's something we should talk about. I mean, we're not exactly very young anymore."

"Mac Taylor, are you telling me that I'm old?"

"No. I'm just saying that…you know."

"I know." Christine sipped her coffee again. "I think we'll both know when we're ready. When we are done enjoying each other, we can add another person."

Mac smiled. "That's probably a good idea."

"I think it is. We need time to explore each other and find all those erotic places."

"Okay, okay. Let's just eat now."

Christine laughed. "You're so funny," she said.

"Funny? I don't want to talk about sex at the table," Mac said.

"Is that a rule with you?"

Mac looked at her. "Well, no, but I don't like to. I want to eat without talking about sex."

"Does it upset your digestion?"

"No, I don't guess."

"Does it…" Christine leaned toward him. "…make you want to go and jump in the bed?" she whispered.

Mac looked at her. "Will you stop that?"

Christine laughed then. "Oh I just love you," she said.

"I love you too but right now I want to eat."

"So what are we doing after breakfast?"

"I know I am going to do some more fishing today. Maybe we will go down and rent a boat and go out on the water."

"That could be fun."

"Yes. We can find the fish instead of waiting for them to find us."

"Or I could lounge in the sun while you do the fishing today."

"If that's what you want to do…after all, we're on vacation."

"Not just a vacation. We're on our honeymoon."

Mac smiled. "And what a honeymoon it has been," he said.

"It's been very exciting."

"I agree." Mac looked at her. "I have thoroughly enjoyed this, even the skinny dipping."

Christine smiled. "I especially enjoyed that. Can we do it again?"

"Well, I suppose we might get better with practice. Maybe this time I won't nearly fall in."

"Did you nearly fall in? I thought we 'were' in."

"Yeah, but I almost lost my grip on that pier."

"It was feeling good, wasn't it?"

Mac looked at her. "You know it was," he said.

"I'm glad it was dark."

"Me too. I wouldn't mind going swimming again. We could combine the fishing and swimming and just stay here around the cabin today."

"I want to get out there and see what we can see together."

Mac considered that. "Well, I already showed you the waterfall and the ravine," he said. "I suppose we could rent a boat and see more of the lake."

"Great."

"But this morning, I want to sit out there in the sun a while on the pier and maybe fish then too."

"You want this to be our lazy day?" Christine asked.

"Yeah. I want to relax today."

"And take little breaks to have a little fun?"

Mac smiled. "Of course."

When they were done with breakfast, they got ready and went out to the pier. Mac put some sunscreen on. He thought he had gotten a considerable amount of sun yesterday but today, he had no shirt on. Christine put on her bikini top with her shorts and sat in the chair beside Mac. They had their fishing poles out there but were not fishing yet.

"Mac, what would you want to name a baby if we had one?" Christine asked.

"I don't know," Mac said. "If it was a boy I certainly would not curse it with the name Llewellyn."

Christine laughed. "Mac Llewellyn Taylor. Jo couldn't believe it when I told her that."

Mac looked at her. "You told her that?"

"I had to. She was filling out your papers at the hospital."

"Do you know what I went through in the Marines when they found out my middle name?"

"What?"

"Just guess what my nickname was."

"I have no idea."

"Lulu!"

Christine laughed. "Ha, ha, ha," Mac said. "Go ahead and laugh. All my fellow soldiers thought it was hilarious too, and don't even mention high school."

"Is that why you're so shy?" Christine asked.

"Oh I don't know. Teasing does nothing for the self-esteem."

"I guess everybody has been teased at some time or another. You don't mind me teasing you, do you?"

Mac looked at her a little surprised. "No," he said. "I like your teasing and besides, you love me."

Christine smiled. "I do, and I like to tease you."

"Why?"

"Because you squirm. I like to see you squirm."

"Squirm? What could I tease you about?" Mac asked.

Christine stared at him a moment. "I'm waiting."

Mac looked at her. "Well I could tease you about being a wild woman."

"I'm only wild about you."

"I'm wild about you too." Mac stood up. "I think I am going for a dip."

"You know what happens when we get in water together."

Mac smiled and then jumped in. Christine took her shorts off so she was in her bikini and then she jumped in too. Mac surfaced and waited for Christine to come up. She came up right in front of him. "So much for that shower," she said as she put her arms around his neck. She kissed him passionately. "We didn't have our sunrise session of love."

"We didn't, did we?" Mac asked.

"Can we have it now?"

Mac looked around them. "Not a soul in sight," he said.

"Oh good."

"Why don't you hold on to the pier this time?"

"You think I might be better at it than you?"

"You never know."

Mac held her as he swam over to the edge of the pier. He kissed her as his hands glided up under her bikini top. He reached around behind her and untied the strap. "Oh, Mac," she whispered as he moved his kiss down her neck and down her chest.

Then Mac heard Christine gasp. "Mac, stop!" she said.

Mac looked at her. "What? I didn't hurt you did I?" he asked.

"No! I see that boat."

Mac moved back from her and looked around. He could see the boat across the water and they seemed to be moving slowly over toward the edge of the lake close to their cabin. Christine tied her bikini back and got out of the water. Mac got out of the water and sat down in his chair. Christine put her shorts back on and sat down. She thought Mac looked angry.

"What are they doing here?" Christine asked.

"I don't know," Mac said. "But this is two times too many that they are over here around our cabin. I'm going to report them to the Lodge Headquarters. I don't think they are associated with the next two cabins. They were not there that I saw."

Christine looked at him. "You went on that hike just to see, didn't you?"

"No, I wanted to take you to see that, but I wanted to see about them too."

"You think they're spying on us? Why?"

"I don't have any idea why they would be."

"I've never seen them before."

"Neither have I and that case we were working on only involved one person."

Christine did not like the idea of someone watching them. It was unnerving and not knowing who and why was even worse. She frowned and looked at Mac. "This just makes me mad," she said.

Mac looked at her. "What?" he asked.

"Someone ruining our honeymoon."

"Oh. They are not going to ruin our honeymoon."

"They ruined our sex in the water…twice."

"Honey, we can go in the cabin and have sex in the tub if you want."

"But we should be able to do what we want here without someone spying."

Mac put his robe over his lap as he noticed that boat getting closer. He had not gotten over his encounter with Christine yet. "Maybe they like to watch people having sex," he said. "Maybe they were trying to see if they could see us."

"How would they know what we were doing?"

"I don't know, Honey. Maybe they know we're newlyweds. You know, newlyweds have sex a lot."

Christine folded her arms. "I am going inside. You tell them to stay away from here."

Mac watched as the boat got closer and he heard the door of the cabin slam. He smiled at Christine's feistiness but then he frowned as he saw that the same two men were in that boat. They got close enough that he could talk to them. "What are you doing here again?" he asked bluntly. "I told you this is a private area."

"Can't you be neighborly?" one of them asked.

"NO. You're not supposed to be here. I suppose I could get my rifle in there."

The men frowned wondering if Mac really had a rifle. "Well, you don't have to get hostile about it."

"You have already been told and it would seem that two grown people could understand what 'private' means," Mac said.

"We were just fishing."

"No, you weren't. I don't appreciate you spying on my wife and me. If you don't stay away, I'm going to report you."

Mac could see that they did not like the way he was talking to them but he did not care and he would report them. "Sorry," one of them said.

Mac watched them as the pulled away in the boat. He would go to the Headquarters as soon as he knew they were gone. When they went around the bend in the lake, he went into the cabin. Christine was standing beside the door. "What did you tell them?" she asked.

"I told them to stay away from here and made them think I have a rifle in here. I think I better make that true. I am going to report them as soon as we can get ready."

Christine looked him up and down. "Are you sure you don't need to satisfy your desire first?" she asked.

Mac smiled and put his hands on his hips. "You're going to wear me out," he said.

Christine put her arms around his neck. "I don't think so."

Mac put his arms around her and pulled her against him. He kissed her and then looked at her. "Yeah, I guess I better quench this hunger," he said.

Christine giggled as Mac picked her up and carried her into the bedroom. "So, are we going to use the bed or the tub?" Mac asked.

"Oh, either one," Christine replied.

Mac grinned at her as he went over to the bed. "It's the closest," he said.

Christine giggled again as Mac took her in his arms. She loved the feeling of his body next to hers…


	23. Chapter 23

That afternoon, Mac and Christine went to the security station at the Lodge Headquarters. "You think they will listen?" Christine asked.

"They better," Mac replied. "If they don't, I won't be coming here again."

They went inside and walked up to the counter where there was a Forest Ranger as well as three other officers who were sitting at desks. "Can I help you?" the Forest Ranger asked as he came over to the counter.

"I'm Mac Taylor and this is my wife, Christine. We're down there in cabin 10 and there has been two guys coming around in a white boat to our private area. They said they were fishing the first time but the second time they seemed to be just wandering around. I told them to stay away from there but they came back. They said they were in the next two cabins but when we walked by there on a hike, they were not there."

The Ranger scowled at that as he was making notes of Mac's complaint. "Did you get their names?" he asked.

"No," Mac said. "They seemed to be just trying to find out what we were doing."

"I see. We will keep a look out."

"They were there this morning."

"You got a cell phone with you?"

"Yes, but I wanted to come down here in person to tell you."

"Well, if you see them again, just call this number." The Ranger gave Mac his card. "I'm Ranger Bryce Carrington."

"Thanks."

Mac and Christine walked out of the office and back to the Avalanche. "You think they will come back?" Christine asked.

"I hope not," Mac said. "I don't want to have to get rough."

"You would get rough?"

"If they came around there bothering you or threatening us or anything."

"What would you do?"

Mac looked at her and then looked back at the road. "Well, if they tried to come into the cabin, I would break their nose and maybe dislocate their elbow and…"

"Okay, that's enough," Christine said.

"Hey, it's how we Marines work."

Mac drove down to the boat rental. He had brought all their fishing gear and everything so they could just rent the boat and go out on the lake. He chose a boat and they got started. "You like going out on boats?" Christine asked.

"It's okay," Mac replied. "It's not one of my favorite things to do but it's alright."

"If you don't like it, why are we going?"

"I think it will be more fun with you."

Christine smiled. "You're something else, you know that?"

Mac smiled as he sat down in the seat and put his shades on. "I try to be," he said.

They headed out onto the lake and when Mac found a good spot, he dropped the anchor. "Now, I am going to fish," he said.

"And I am going to lay here and get some sun," Christine added. She stripped down to her bikini and fixed a beach towel in the bottom of the boat.

Mac watched her a moment. "You know, that is very distracting," he said.

"Why don't you join me?"

"Oh, well, if I got down there, I might not do much fishing and you might not get much sun."

Christine laughed. "I might get some in places I don't want it."

Mac looked at her. "Now who is talking dirty?"

"You mentioned it."

Mac sat down in his fishing chair and baited his hook. "If I pull this fish in the boat, I hope he doesn't jump down there on you," he said.

Christine gasped. "You wouldn't dare," she said.

Mac grinned with his mischievous grin. "I'll 'try' not to."

"OH, you!"

Mac cast his line out and then put the pole handle into the holder while he took his shirt off. "I want a little sun on my chest I think," he said. He picked up the pole and leaned back to wait for a bite. "This is very relaxing."

"It's so quiet."

"Uh huh."

Mac finally got so relaxed he almost dropped the pole so he stuck it back in the holder and leaned back in the chair. He did not remember the last time he was not worried about a case or something. He listened to the quiet…not horns honking, no people yelling, no sirens…it was very peaceful and he could even hear birds singing.

Christine was thinking the same thing. It had been a long time since she was not thinking about something concerning the restaurant. And after she met Mac, she had been worried about him part of the time and worried about losing him or that he would not feel the same about her that she did about him. She thought dating was a lot of stress. Now that he was hers, she did not have to worry about that anymore because she knew he would never want anyone else. She could not help but think of that incident he had told her about with that Quinn woman. She thought there was nothing more disgusting than a woman who tried to take someone else's husband.

Mac actually fell asleep and started to dream. He dreamed that he and Christine were on the boat and suddenly, something turned the boat over and they fell into the water…Mac started out of his sleep. He looked at Christine who had turned over on her stomach now. He took a deep breath and blew it out as he realized he had been dreaming…and he also remembered another reason that he did not like boating. The water was a little choppy now and he was starting to feel sick. He got the fishing pole and reeled the line in trying to ignore that feeling of sickness. He swallowed hard and took a deep breath. That did not help, however. He could feel how the boat was moving with those waves.

"Christine, I think we need to go back to shore," Mac said, trying not to think about the movement of the boat.

Christine turned over. "Why?" she asked.

"I, uhm, I need to go to the bathroom."

"The bathroom? Can't you just…you know?"

Mac looked at her. "No," he said. "You want me to get caught for indecent exposure?"

Christine sat up and stared at him a moment. "You're seasick!" she said. "Why didn't you just tell me?"

"I'm trying not to think about it too much. The water is choppy."

"Oh Mac. You thought we would get off the water and it would be gone and you would be fine. That's what you thought."

"You know me like a book."

"When will you ever learn?"

"I don't know."

Mac got his line in and then got over to the driver's seat of the boat. He leaned on the steering wheel a moment trying to get rid of the wave of nausea that was trying to overtake him. "Should I drive?" Christine asked.

Mac thought he would absolutely pass out. "I shouldn't have gone to sleep," he said.

Mac had to let Christine drive the boat to shore. He almost fell when he got off the boat but he sat on the pier a moment to get over the sickness. Christine got everything out of the boat and then got over to him. "Are you alright?" she asked.

"Yes, I'll be fine." Mac looked up at the sky. "I think it's going to rain."

Christine looked up and she had to agree. Clouds were moving in now. "I guess that's why the water is choppy," she said.

"Yeah. I guess we can go back to the cabin and spend the day in bed."

"I think you're feeling better."

Mac looked up at her and smiled. "I am," he said, "now that I'm off that boat."

Mac stood up and felt a little dizzy for a moment but then he was able to walk to the truck anyway. They went back to the cabin and went inside. Mac laid down on the bed and Christine went into the bathroom. When she came out, Mac was just lying there looking out the window. She went over to the bed and lay down beside him. "Definitely going to rain," Mac said.

"I love to lie around when it's raining," Christine replied.

Mac looked at her. "I'm sorry I messed up our boat ride."

Christine turned on her side toward him. "Oh, I would much rather be here with you than on that boat."

Mac smiled and pushed her hair back. "I don't think it would have bothered me if the water hadn't started rocking the boat."

"Well, you never know when those things are going to happen."

They stared at each other a moment. "Oh, I could just tear your clothes off," Christine said.

Mac rolled over on his back. "I'm all yours," he said.

Christine laughed and then crawled on top of him and sat down. She took her shirt off and was still wearing the bikini top. "Are you going to take it off or am I?" she asked.

"I thought you were going to rip my clothes off," Mac said. "Don't rip them too much. I like these shorts."

"Mac Taylor! You are such a joker!"

Mac's smile brightened and then he grabbed her and pulled her down. She screamed as he tickled her and rolled her off him. "Stop!" she yelled as she was laughing while he tickled her mercilessly.

"I didn't think I would hear that," Mac said.

Christine stuck her fingers into his ribs and started to tickle him. "NO!" Mac yelled and started to back up.

"OH, you want to tickle me, but I don't need to tickle you!"

Mac tried to get away but she sat down on his back. He could not help but yell and laugh as she dug into his ribs. Then he was able to turn over and roll her off onto the bed again. Christine grabbed a pillow then and hit Mac with it. Mac's smile became even more mischievous then and he grabbed a pillow too. "You wouldn't!" Christine said.

"I would!" Mac replied and hit her with the pillow.

Christine was laughing and did not remember when she had had so much fun as they had a pillow fight. Finally Mac grabbed her and they fell onto the bed with her head at the foot of the bed, and they were both a little winded from that romp. Mac leaned over her as he was on his hands and knees. "You sure are beautiful," he said as he gazed down into her face.

"And you sure are handsome," Christine replied.

Mac leaned down and kissed her and then he pulled the string that was tied behind her neck. "Oops," he said.

Christine made a fake gasp and grabbed her bikini top. "Why, you animal," she said.

Mac smiled. "Are you going to try and play hard to get?"

"I liked that fight we had."

"Me too. It just made this more fun."

"I guess all fights are not bad."

Christine put her arms around his neck and pulled him down. They shared a long passionate kiss. Mac looked at her a moment with a serious look. "Do you know how much I love you?" he asked.

"Show me."

Mac kissed her and he thought this time was going to be different. They had been having sex a lot, but this time would be love…of course, they had all been for love but he knew the difference. Christine knew the difference too…or she was learning it now. There was a lot of difference in just having sex and actually making love. Making love led to many more sensations and it came from the heart, not just the mind.

Mac heard the thunder announce the arrival of the storm as they slipped under the covers together. He woke up later to the patter of rain on the roof and the sounds of thunder. It sounded so peaceful, he did not want to get out of the bed. He turned over on his side and felt Christine's arm slide around him as she kissed his back and cuddled up to him. Mac sighed with contentment as he closed his eyes.

When Mac woke up again, it was still raining outside and it was also dark. He rolled over on his back and stretched as he realized he was hungry. He sat up on the side of the bed and yawned. Christine sat up too. "I am starving," she said.

"Me too," Mac replied.

Christine got over behind him and put her arms around him. "That was so wonderful," she whispered and kissed his cheek.

"Yes, it was," Mac said and kissed her hand. "Let's get dressed and find something to eat."

"Are you sure you're not grungy?"

Mac smiled and looked at her. "I was just thinking that I might ought to get a shower."

Christine giggled and lay back down in the bed and watched Mac getting ready to take a shower. "We're going to have to wash some things," she said.

"I know," Mac replied. "I guess that laundry room is here for a reason."

Mac went on and got a shower and then went to the kitchen. He could see the rain falling heavy outside the back windows. He had to worry about that a little. After all, they were in the mountains. Too much rain all at once could make problems. He opened the refrigerator and looked to see what all they had left. He wished he could have gotten a fish that day but he had not gotten anything. He supposed it was because of the impending rain.

Just as Mac was about to make a sandwich, he heard something outside. He scowled as he looked toward the back windows but he did not see anything out there. He walked over to the door and looked out the window beside the door. He noticed that the wind was blowing and figured a branch from the tree had hit the cabin or something. Christine came in there. She had gotten dressed too. "Did you hear that?" she asked.

"Yes," Mac said. "I think it was a branch raking up against the cabin."

Christine shivered and rubbed her arms. "It's kinda chilly in here."

"I'll build a fire if you'll fix the sandwiches."

"Deal."

Mac went to the fireplace and put some wood in and then got the fire going. He had to admit it was rather chilly in there with all that rain falling. By that time, Christine had the food ready and she brought it over to the couch. "Oh that fire feels good," she said.

"Sure does," Mac agreed. "It's so dark out there. It doesn't look like it is going to let up any time soon."

"I guess we can just cuddle and keep each other warm."

Mac nodded and took a bite of his sandwich. He was worried about all that rain. It could wash out roads and everything and he wondered if it could flood this area they were in. Christine noticed Mac's silence. "What are you thinking about?" she asked.

"I'm just thinking about all that rain out there," Mac said honestly. "You know we're in the mountains."

Christine stared at him a moment. "Are you saying we could be in danger?"

"I don't know. Water has to go somewhere but I'm sure they would come and warn us if they thought we were in danger."

Christine looked out the window. "We could be stranded here?" she asked.

"Don't start getting nervous. They would warn us before that happened."

"I hope."

"Water has been pretty scarce lately so maybe it's pretty dry and the ground will soak up the water."

They ate and then sat on the couch and watched the fire. Christine played with a button on Mac's blue plaid shirt while they sat. "What do you think it will be like to actually live together?" she asked.

"I think we have been doing pretty good while we've been here," Mac said.

"But this is not like living together in an apartment…everyday, mingling all our things together, learning what each other does every day."

"Sounds wonderful to me."

Christine sat up and looked at him. "Does it?" she asked.

"Absolutely. I miss that…looking in my closet and seeing your stuff in there, opening a dresser drawer and seeing your underwear or lingerie or going in the bathroom and seeing your shampoo and perfume and all that in there."

Christine smiled. "You're going to go through my drawers?" she asked.

"Well, I might get curious if I'm there and you're not."

"Oh, so that would mean that I can go through yours?"

"Of course."

"I think this is going to be a lot of fun."

Mac smiled and kissed her. "I know it is."

"Do you think we're going to argue?"

"Well, I don't know, I think we probably will. Most people argue when they're learning to live together."

Just then, someone burst through the front door of the cabin. Mac and Christine jumped up and Mac shoved Christine behind him. "Who are you?" Mac asked. "And what do you want?"

The two men came on into the cabin. "Why, you'll see what we want soon," one of them said. "Now come over here."

Mac just stared at them a moment. "You tell me what this is all about?"

"Come over here."

Mac could hear Christine's breathing and he could tell she was scared. "Is it me you want?" Mac asked. "Why don't you just leave her here and take me?"

"No. We want you both. Now, are you going to come over here or are we going to come over there and get you?"

Mac glared at them. "You come and get me," he said.

The two men looked at each other. "We can't harm them," the other one said. "I guess we will have to take them by force."

Even though they were bigger than Mac, they could see that he was not one bit afraid of them as they approached them. He pushed Christine around the end of the couch and she crouched there. She could not believe this was happening. She watched as the two men approached Mac. She knew he would fight to the death…or at least until they got the better of him.

Mac glared at the two men as they came on closer to him. He thought they looked at little uncertain but they would not touch Christine if he could help it. Suddenly, one of them lunged at Mac and Mac grabbed his arm and jerked him forward right into his elbow. The man stumbled backward as the other one was surprised at the speed that Mac moved but he was not surprised long because Mac punched him so hard in the nose that he fell flat of his back right over his pal.

Mac grabbed Christine's hand. "Come on!" he yelled as they headed for the back door.

Mac jerked the door open and droplets of rain hit them in the face but they plunged out into the rain, and it was cold rain. Mac made sure he held Christine's hand as they were running. He did not know where their attackers were but he was determined that they were not going to get Christine. He ran out across the clearing and into the forest on the other side. He heard someone yell behind them, and he figured it must be the two that attacked them.

"Where are we going?" Christine asked.

"We're going to try and get back to the Avalanche," Mac said.

"But, wouldn't they make sure we couldn't get away in that?"

Mac stopped suddenly and Christine almost ran into his back. He knew she was right. He turned and headed the other way and soon came to the road which was very muddy now since this part of it was not paved. Mac thought he would try and get down to the next cabin and if they could not get help there, they would try and get to the Lodge Headquarters. The rain was pouring down and Mac could hardly see where they were going because it was so dark. Then there was a big flash of lightning and loud thunder.

Mac did not like the idea of being out in a storm like this in the mountains. They could be struck by lightning. He took a chance to look behind them but did not see their pursuers whom he was sure were back there somewhere. It really made him nervous not knowing where those two were. He kept running and then he stepped into a pothole and both he and Christine fell flat in the mud. Mac scrambled back to his feet and pulled Christine up and they started running again.

Finally, Mac saw some lights up ahead and he knew they were nearing the next cabin. "Come on," he said. "We're almost to the next cabin."

"Mac, it didn't look like anyone else was in that cabin," Christine said.

"We're going to see."

There was no car in the parking area for the cabin, but they went down to the cabin. Mac banged on the door but he could tell there was no one there. "Let's go," he said and went around the cabin and into the woods again.

"Mac, I think I hear something behind us," Christine said with fear etched in her voice.

"Just keep running!"

Mac tried to run faster but then he could hear them too. They were coming and making a lot of noise in the squishy wet ground. Finally, they came to another clearing. "Keep going!" Mac said and pushed Christine forward.

"Mac, come on!" Christine begged.

"Go! If they get both of us, there won't be any hope! Get to the next cabin and get help!"

Christine reluctantly went on, but she was sobbing as she went. Mac turned back toward the woods and he could hear their pursuers getting closer. He hid behind a tree and waited. He would give them something to regret…


	24. Chapter 24

Mac waited behind the tree, and he noticed a thick limb lying on the ground that resembled a club, so he picked that up. Suddenly, the first of the two men came bursting out of the trees. He was startled when he saw Mac for a moment, but that was all Mac needed and he swung his club and finished up the man's nose. The man fell flat in the mud and did not move, but the other one knew Mac had the club and as Mac got ready to swing it again, he ducked and then rammed his shoulder into Mac's stomach as he tackled him. Mac hit the ground as his breath left him in a whoosh.

Mac tried to get up fast, but it was impossible in that slippery mud, and the man was trying to get a hold on him. Mac drew back as far as he could and punched the guy. The man shook his head and then grabbed a handful of mud and rubbed it in Mac's face. Mac scrambled away from him trying to get his breath back and now his eyes were hurting. He turned his face up toward the pouring rain and rubbed some of the mud away as he was trying to get up at the same time. When he got his eyes open, he saw the man coming toward him. Mac jumped away from him and he crashed into a tree. Mac could not believe it but the man lay on the ground moaning with the pain in his head now.

Mac turned and ran across the clearing and started to go back into the woods on the other side but then someone else stepped out into the trail. This person had a gun and Mac could clearly see that it was a woman even though she was wearing a ski mask. However, Mac could not stop suddenly, and when he tried in that slick mud, he slid feet first right into her and knocked her sprawling. He grabbed for the gun that was now lying in the mud and then got up. "Get up!" he yelled as he aimed the weapon at her.

The woman glared at him which he could see even in this dark rainy mess. She stood up and stared at him with what he could see were green eyes. She was wearing all black which included a black trench coat. "Take off that mask!" Mac demanded.

"Not on your life!" she replied.

All Mac saw was a bright flash and then he was on the ground. All he could see were spots in front of his eyes and his ears were ringing. He stared up at the sky wondering what had happened and then he knew nothing…

Christine had arrived at the other cabin. She banged on the door. "Help!" she yelled. "Help!"

She saw a light come on in the cabin and someone came from the back room. A man came to the door. "Who is it?" he asked.

"My name is Christine Taylor! Someone broke into our cabin! I need help!"

The man opened the door and looked at Christine. "Do you have a phone?" Christine asked as she saw a woman come from the back room as well.

"Come in," the man said.

Christine went in. She realized she was freezing and drenched. "Please, I need to use your phone!" she said. "Do you have the number for the security station?"

"Yes," the woman said. She got a paper that had the information on it.

Christine dialed the number and told the Forest Ranger what was going on. "It's those same two men who Mac reported today!" she said.

"We're on our way," Ranger Carrington replied.

Christine ended the call and then started to cry. She could not imagine why anyone would be after them. She had never seen those men before as far as she knew. The woman in the cabin went over to Christine. "What's going on?" she asked. "My name is Marlie."

"Christine. Someone broke into our cabin. They were the same ones who had been coming around in that white boat."

"We saw them," Marlie said. "They came up and asked us if we had caught any good fish."

"They asked us that too and then they came back again. My husband went and reported them but we had not heard anything about them and then they broke in tonight."

"Where is your husband?"

"He stayed out there to stop them while I got away to get some help."

"Well, do you want some hot coffee? You must be freezing."

Christine shivered. "I am," she said, but she was crying. "I don't know what's happening to Mac out there."

Marlie put a blanket around Christine's shoulders and soon they heard a siren. The Ranger and several others were there. Christine ran outside and told them which way it was to find Mac, but they would not allow her to go with them. She watched them run into the woods and down the trail. She wanted to go with them…to know what was happening to Mac.

Ranger Carrington and the others ran down the trail and finally came to the clearing where Mac had stopped the two attackers. They were surprised at what they saw. There was a woman lying right beside the trail and when they checked her, they found that she was dead. They took the mask off her but they did not recognize her.

Ranger Carrington kept looking around as he knew what had happened and he finally found Mac about forty feet away. He was struggling to breathe and was trying to keep his face out of the water. "Mac Taylor?" Carrington said.

Mac did not respond. He did not even seem to know that anyone was there or had spoken to him. Carrington looked at Mac's right hand which was burned on the palm. His shoes were gone and his hair seemed to be singed and standing on end. He had definitely been struck by lightning. "We need to get this man out of here!" Carrington yelled. "He's been struck by lightning!"

They gathered around Mac and got him up. They would have to carry him out of the woods to get him to help. They could do nothing for him there in the pouring rain. Some of the others stayed to take care of the situation and get the other two criminals out of the woods as well. They were not dead of course but they were just waking up.

Carrington and the others helping him got Mac back down to the cabin they had come from. One other the others got the medical kit while they got Mac inside the cabin. "Mac!" Christine screamed. "What happened to him?"

"He's been struck by lightning," Carrington said.

Christine was horrified. "Is he going to be alright?"

"He has to get some help right away."

They began to work on Mac as someone called in the situation and got a helicopter on the way to fly Mac to the hospital. Christine watched while they hooked Mac up to a heart monitor and put oxygen on him. She did not know much about being struck by lightning but she knew that it could have dire effects on a person's body. It could mess up the heart rhythm, thinking and all sorts of things. She started crying again thinking of all that. All she could do was hope and pray that he would not suffer any of that.

When the helicopter arrived, they got Mac into it as quickly as possible and Christine got in to go with him. "I'll be at the hospital later to get a statement from you," Ranger Carrington said. "This will be turned over to the state police now."

"Okay," Christine replied.

"Don't worry. A lot of people have survived this. I've seen a lot worse."

Christine looked at Mac as the helicopter door was closed and then they were on their way. Mac had his eyes open. "Christine," he whispered barely audibly.

Christine leaned over him. "Mac, I'm here," she said.

"I love you."

"I love you too, Mac."

Mac was just staring up at the ceiling. Christine could not help but cry as she watched him. She stroked his hair hoping that it would give him comfort. "You're going to be okay," she whispered in his ear. "I'll be praying for you."

When they arrived at the hospital, Christine had to wait out in the hall while Mac was taken away. She was still wet from running through the rain and she felt cold and alone. She thought of Jo and the others at the lab. She knew they would come if she called them and they would want to know about this. Of course, she did not have her phone or anything with her. They had run from their cabin so quickly, they did not have time to take anything with them.

Christine went to the lounge and sat down and then she just cried. They had been having such a good time and now this had to happen. She wondered who had done this and why. As she cried she said a prayer for Mac too. She wanted him to be well so they could actually move into the same apartment. She remembered what he had said about that…mingling their things together. She wanted to know what that was like.

Christine got a tissue and dried her eyes and then she went to the phone there in the lounge and called Jo's number. Jo was lying in bed…a rare time that she could actually not have to be out at a crime scene. Her phone rang and she got it off the nightstand. "Hello," she answered.

"Jo?"

Jo was surprised to hear Christine's voice on the other end of the line. "Christine? Are you okay?"

"No. JO, Mac's been struck by lightning!"

Jo sat up in the bed. "What?"

Christine told her what had happened and what hospital they were in. "I'll be there as soon as I can," Jo said. "I'm so sorry about this."

"I'm sorry to bother you," Christine said. "I just feel so…"

"Don't apologize. I will be there."

Jo ended the call and jumped out of bed. Struck by lightning! She could not believe it. She knew what that could do to a person because she had seen it before. She hoped Mac would be okay. She could not imagine how Christine must feel like. When she was dressed, she headed for the hospital and texted Danny on her way down to get a cab.

Christine paced back and forth in the waiting room wondering what was happening to Mac. She sat down and said a prayer for him while she waited. She had heard of so many things that lightning could do to a person. She just hoped maybe it was a glancing blow and would not have severe effects although he had seemed to be confused when they found him and just barely conscious.

Soon, Jo arrived at the hospital and she found Christine in the waiting area. "Christine!" she said.

Christine was so glad to see Jo, she just hugged her. "Is he okay?" Jo asked.

"I don't know," Christine said. "They haven't told me anything yet."

Jo looked at Christine and could tell she had been crying. "What happened?" she asked.

Christine began to cry again and they sat down. She told Jo what had happened. Jo was shocked. "And you don't know who they were?" she asked.

"No," Christine said. "I had never seen them before."

Jo could not imagine what those men had wanted. She would be finding out though. She would contact the state police and find out what they knew about this mess. But Mac had been struck by lightning and that was not caused by anything those attackers had done. She wondered what happened to the ones who had been after him. Were they struck too? She wanted to know all this.

Finally a doctor came out looking for Christine. "How is he?" Christine asked.

"Well, he certainly has not forgotten your name," the doctor replied. "That's all he's been saying. He's confused and of course, he has a concussion and is suffering all the symptoms of a concussion, but we really won't know if he's been affected any other way until he comes to himself."

"You mean he doesn't know who he is?"

"He's confused, which is a very typical reaction to being struck by lightning. Since the brain and heart use electrical impulses to function, you can imagine that something like this is going to affect them but he doesn't appear to have had a cardiac arrest although he had some arrhythmia. I believe that will clear up soon. His other symptoms are not clear until he's fully conscious and able to tell us some things and answer questions."

"But, he's going to survive?"

"His heart is strong and his brain function is normal so I don't see anything right now that would indicate that he is not. He is very lucky. He has a burn on his hand but he doesn't have any other burns."

"Thank you, Doctor. When can I see him?"

"Soon. We want to observe him a little longer before anyone goes in."

"Okay."

Christine turned to Jo as the doctor left and they embraced. "I'm so glad he's going to be okay," Jo said. "I'm going to get on the phone and I'm going to find out who was involved in this. I want to know and I have friends where I can find out."

"I want to know too."

"You will. Just be strong."

Jo walked away and Christine sat down as she sighed with relief. "Thank God," she whispered. She was just glad he was going to survive…


	25. Chapter 25

**I hope you will all enjoy this last chapter on this story. This will continue in a sequel story, so be looking for it. Thanks for reading. miss37**

Christine was almost asleep when a nurse came to get her. "You can see your husband now," she said. "He's sleeping but you can go in."

"Thank you," Christine said as she jumped to her feet.

They went down the hall and to the room that Mac was in which was a CCU room since he was being monitored closely. Christine walked into the room and hurried over to the bed. Mac had on an oxygen mask and the heart monitor was beeping. She could see that there was a bandage around his hand. She hoped he would remember what happened when he woke up, but she remembered that he could not remember what happened after he was shot. He did not remember the actual event of being shot. They had talked about it several times but he had not been able to remember. She just hoped that this event would not cause his aphasia to act up again but she knew it was certainly possible.

Christine touched Mac's hair and could feel that he felt a little warm. She kissed his forehead. "I love you, Mac," she whispered. "No matter what." She lay down on the cot beside his bed and sighed. She was so tired she thought she would fall asleep.

Just as Christine was about to doze off, someone knocked on the door. She sat up. "Come in," she said.

Jo came in the door. "I'm sorry to bother you," she said. "I thought you could use some dry clothes."

Christine was relieved to see the bag of clothes in Jo's hand. "Oh, I appreciate that so much," she said.

"I noticed you were wet when you were in the waiting room."

Christine took the clothes. "Did you find out anything?"

"I did."

Christine thought Jo looked very troubled. "What is it?" she asked.

"I think that lightning bolt saved Mac's life and probably yours too," Jo said.

"What?"

"The two men who attacked you and Christine were working for a woman. She hired them to kidnap the two of you because she intended to hold the two of you captive, and said that if she couldn't have Mac, no one could."

Christine could not believe what she was hearing. "Who was she?" she asked.

"I'm sure you've heard of her. She was even at your wedding as I understand."

Christine frowned. "One of those…women?"

"Yes, but she's dead now."

"How?"

"Apparently, the lightning bolt hit her more directly than it did Mac and she was killed."

"Well, which one was she and are the others involved?"

"It was…

Just then, someone knocked on the door again. "Come in," Christine said.

Ranger Carrington came in this time. "Mrs. Taylor," he greeted. He looked at Mac. "How is he?"

"He's doing as well as he can I suppose."

"I need to take your statement on this if you don't mind."

"I don't mean to be rude or butt in," Jo said. "But she is tired right now and needs some rest. Can't you come back in the morning?"

Ranger Carrington looked at her a moment. "I suppose I can but I just wanted to get this over with. I'm sorry that this happened. I'll come back in the morning."

When he was gone, Christine looked at Jo. "Thanks," she said. "I am exhausted."

"You're welcome," Jo replied.

Christine went on into the bathroom to change her clothes. She was so glad to take off those wet clothes and get into something dry. She put the clothes on and hung up her wet clothes. Then she got some of the water out of her hair with a towel. By that time, she felt even more tired. She went back into the room. "I have to get some rest," she said.

"You go right ahead," Jo replied. "I'll be back in the morning and I will make sure no one disturbs you tonight."

"Thanks."

Christine turned off the lights except for a small one and then lay down on the cot. She watched Mac until she fell asleep…

The next morning, Christine woke up hearing the heart monitor beeping very fast. She sat up and saw that Mac was awake and looking very nervous. She went over to the bed. "Mac," she said softly.

Mac seemed to shudder at hearing her and then he looked at her. He seemed to be confused at first but then he said, "Christine?"

"Yes, it's me."

"Where am I?"

"You're in the hospital."

"Why?"

"Don't you remember?"

Mac considered that. "No."

"You were…struck by lightning."

Mac looked scared then. "What? How?"

"Just relax, you're going to be fine. You don't remember what happened?"

"No."

"That's okay. You'll remember later." Christine pressed the button for the nurse. She kissed Mac. "Don't be afraid."

"Why do I feel so nervous?" Mac asked.

The nurse came into the room and Mac was startled. "Good morning," the nurse said. "How do you feel this morning?"

"He's very nervous," Christine said.

"My name is Diane. I'm your nurse today."

"Just relax," Christine whispered to Mac. "She's here to take care of you."

The nurse checked Mac's blood pressure and other vitals. Mac just watched her wondering why he felt so nervous. "Why do I feel so nervous?" he asked.

"Your nerves are just trying to get over the jolt you received from the lightning," Diane said. "Do you remember what happened?"

"No."

"Why don't you think a moment and see if you remember? What is the last thing you remember?"

Mac scowled as he thought about that. "I don't know," he said. "I don't know."

Diane could see he was getting more agitated. "That's okay. You will remember later."

"Why can't I remember now?"

"I'll let the doctor tell you all that. He will be in later."

"I want to know now!"

Christine was surprised at Mac's rudeness. "Mac, you have to wait for the doctor," she said.

"Why?" Mac asked.

Diane looked at Christine. "He's fine," she said. She looked at Mac. "Just calm down. You will remember soon."

That answer did not make Mac feel any better. He felt like his brain was a jumbled up mess. "I will be back soon," Diane said. "Is there anything you need?"

Mac looked at her. "I need to know what happened to me," he said.

"You were struck by lightning."

Mac frowned. That was not the simple answer he wanted to hear. At the moment, his brain did not seem to be able to register the implications of that. Diane went on out of the room. Mac held up his hand and it trembled. He jerked it back down trying to keep Christine from seeing it.

"You're going to be fine," Christine said as she sat down on the side of the bed.

Mac looked at her. "And just how do you know?" he asked.

"Because you're a fighter, that's why."

Mac put his hand on his head. "My head is killing me," he said. "Why am I aching all over?"

Christine had never seen Mac like this. She did not know what to say. She just hoped that doctor would tell him something when he came in there. Mac looked at her. "Why are you staring at me?" he asked.

Christine could not believe he was so rude and irritable. He had not been like this with her except when he was having those memory problems. "I'm your wife," she said. "I'll stare at you if I want to."

Mac was surprised by that answer. "I don't feel good," he said.

"I know you don't, but you'll get better."

"I was struck by lightning?"

"Yes. That's what they said."

"Were you there?"

"No. I had gone to try and get help. Remember?"

Mac lay back on the pillow and thought. "We were running," he said. "They broke into the cabin." He looked at Christine. "It was raining."

"Yes, it was raining hard and we ran to get away from them. You stopped and told me to go on and get help."

Mac thought a moment. He felt like his brain was scrambled and swirling in a wind. He closed his eyes as he felt nauseous with dizziness. "I can't think," he said.

"Just relax and don't worry," Christine said.

Mac looked at her although he felt like he was going in circles. "I love you."

"I love you too, no matter what."

"Kiss me."

Christine leaned over and kissed him. "Don't worry."

Mac closed his eyes and was soon asleep…

Christine wanted to just cry. She knew this was not going to be easy but she also knew that he was confused because he just woke up. She hoped he would be better when he woke up again.

Later that morning, the doctor came to see Mac who was still sleeping. "Is he supposed to sleep all the time like this?" Christine asked.

"It's typical for people who have been struck by lightning," the doctor said. "I guess their brain is trying to refresh itself. We're not really sure why they sleep like that, but he does have a mild concussion from the blast of the lightning although it apparently didn't hit him directly. It could have been much worse."

"When will he get over this confusion? He can't remember what happened."

"He probably will never remember the actual strike but he may remember up to that moment. It may take some time."

"He never remembered what happened to him when he was shot."

The doctor scowled and looked at her. "He's had brain trauma before?" he asked.

Christine nodded. "Well, he had memory problems and aphasia because of a lack of oxygen to his brain," she said. "He spent six months recovering."

The doctor wrote on his chart. "How long ago was this?"

"A little over a year ago." Christine stared at the doctor as he wrote on the chart. "Is this going to aggravate that?"

The doctor looked at Mac. "It very well could," he said. "We haven't tested his reflexes or anything like that yet. It's hard to say until he's awake long enough to test more."

Doctor Chandler moved over to Mac and looked in his ears. Christine could not believe Mac did not wake up while the doctor examined him. The nurse came in and unwrapped Mac's hand so they could check the burn. Christine watched while they did all that, and Mac started to move a little then. He groaned as they examined the hand. "Stop," he said.

"Just relax, Mr. Taylor," Dr. Chandler soothed. "We'll be done in a moment."

They rewrapped the hand and then he was finished. Dr. Chandler walked over to Christine. "He's going to have a long recovery with this, and after having prior trauma that was not so long ago, I'm afraid it could be much longer and some of his symptoms this time could be permanent."

Christine frowned. "He fought through it before and he will fight through it again."

"He will need all the support he can get, and we will give you information about this so you will know what to expect."

"Thank you."

The doctor left and Christine walked over to Mac's bed. "Mac," she said softly. "Mac." She shook his shoulder. "Mac, wake up."

Mac mumbled something but would not wake up. "Come on, Mac," Christine said. She raised the head of the bed up. "Mac, wake up." She watched him a moment and then kissed him. "Wake up." He took a deep breath and moved his head a little.

"Mmm, that was a good kiss," Mac mumbled without waking up.

"I'll give you a better one if you wake up." Christine waited a moment and then sighed. Then she gave him a longer kiss.

Mac opened his eyes a little then and looked at her. "There you are," Christine said.

"I'm so tired," Mac said.

"I know but you need to eat when your food comes."

"I'm…"

Christine thought he would fall asleep again. She put her hands on his face. "Stay awake," she said.

Just then, someone knocked on the door. Mac looked toward the door but he was very groggy. "Come in," Christine said.

Jo walked into the room, along with Don, who was in a wheelchair. "Hey, Mac," Don said. "How you feeling?"

Mac seemed to consider that a moment. "Sleepy," he said.

"I guess you feel a little fried, don't you?"

Christine thought Mac looked like he hardly knew what was going on. "He's so sleepy," she said.

Jo walked over to the bed. "Mac, is there anything you want to eat?" she asked.

Mac just stared at her as though he were trying to think of what she said. "I don't know," he said.

Jo looked at Christine. "I never told you who was involved in this," she said.

"I almost forgot about that," Christine replied. "I've been so worried. He's been sleeping and they haven't brought his breakfast yet."

"I told you the two men were working for a woman. She intended to kidnap the two of you and hold you captive. There was a gun at the scene but the fingerprints, if there were any, were ruined in the mud. Did Mac have a gun?"

"No."

"We think he may have been holding it and that was why his hand was burned. The lightning hit that gun in his hand when it came off the tree it struck. It must have thrown him forty feet. His shoes were gone and we found them. The woman was dead. She must have been hit first as the lightning hit the tree. They had to be standing beside that tree and he must have been holding that gun and was lucky he was wearing rubber souled shoes."

"Who was the woman?"

Don cleared his throat. "She was an old girlfriend of Mac's," he said.

Christine was beginning to wonder if they were going to tell her. Jo folded her arms. "It was Peyton Driscoll," she said.

Christine's mouth dropped open. "The one he almost wanted to marry?" she asked.

"Yes. Apparently, she was extremely jealous when she found out that he had someone else and that he was getting married."

"And she's dead?"

"Yes. It seems that the lightning went from the tree to her and hit the gun in Mac's hand from her," Jo said.

Christine absorbed that. "So the lightning probably saved his life," she said.

"I would say yes."

"But he is so confused and just seems like he doesn't know what's going on."

"He'll get better over time."

Christine looked at Jo. "Do you think those other women were involved in this?" she asked.

"We're definitely looking into that," Jo replied. "I mean, Polly works in the police department. I don't think she would be in this but the other, we don't know. Quinn is an officer too."

Christine looked at Mac who was almost asleep again. She touched his face. "Don't go back to sleep yet," she said.

"Why?" Mac asked.

"You need to eat."

Mac was silent a moment. "I'm not hungry," he finally said.

Christine was glad when Mac's breakfast was brought to the room. "We'll be going," Jo said. "We just wanted to come by and visit."

"You hang in there," Don said. "You'll get through this."

Mac just looked at him and did not say anything. Jo and Don went out the door. "Oh, I can't stand to see him like that," Jo said.

"From what I know about lightning strikes, it's going to be a long road and he may never fully recover," Don said.

"I know but we can't give up hope."

The next morning, the nurses came to get Mac up for the first time. He was still feeling nervous and had been complaining about headaches and nausea but they would help him get up anyway. They could not see all the affects the lightning had on his body until he was doing more normal things. First they set him up on the side of the bed.

Mac thought he would fall off as he felt very dizzy. "I need to lay back down," he said. "My ears hurt."

"You're going to have some balance problems," the nurse said. She wrote on a chart.

Mac sat there a moment feeling like the room was spinning around him but after he sat there a few minutes, the dizziness subsided a little. Christine just watched him not knowing what to say or do. Next, the nurses got him up on his feet which made the dizziness start again. "I can't do this," Mac said.

"Let's just stand here a moment," the nurse said.

Mac felt extremely sleepy and almost sick but he stood there. However, when they tried to get him to take a step, he felt like he was walking drunk. "What's wrong with me?" he asked.

"Your equilibrium is messed up," the nurse said. "But you will get better. Now, let's walk to the bathroom."

"I don't think I can."

"It won't be easy but if you practice, it will get easier."

Mac stared at the nurse a moment and then he nodded slightly. "Okay," he said. "I don't want to fall."

"OH, we don't want you to fall either. We are going to go very slowly. You just slide your feet at the start."

"And we're going to the…the…" Mac scowled and then he looked thoroughly scared.

Christine covered her mouth to keep him from hearing her gasp. She knew he was going to have aphasia again. She just hoped it would not be permanent but she wondered if a person could overcome something like that twice.

"Christine!" Mac said.

"I'm here," Christine replied.

Mac looked around to see her. "We will get through anything together," Christine said.

Mac swallowed hard and then looked back at his task of trying to walk. He felt like he just wanted to give up and fall, but he would not. His muscles felt sore but he did not feel like he "could not" walk, but he felt like he could not keep his balance. He felt as though he was going in another direction besides the direction that he was looking. They finally made it to the bathroom and Mac felt like he was swaying on his feet.

"Well, you made it this far," the nurse said. "You want to use it while you're in here?"

Mac considered that. "I guess modesty is out the window, right?"

"Oh, we will give you some privacy if you want to sit down there."

"I guess I do."

They helped Mac get into the bathroom and then closed the door. Christine went over to the nurse. "It's aphasia, isn't it?" she asked.

"The doctor will have to determine that," the nurse said. "There are a lot of complications that can arise in this situation. We're just beginning to find out some of them."

"So you think there could be a lot more to it?"

"No way to know yet."

Christine thought she might as well wait and find out. She wondered if any of this was permanent but there was no way of knowing yet. He would have to have time just like he did when he was shot. She had been with him then and she would be with him this time too…


End file.
